Leftover food app to continue after DNC success

An app created to lessen food waste during the Democratic National Convention will continue to serve the homeless after collecting more than five tons of food over eight days.

The Food Connect app, launched July 15 by Food Connect and other local antihunger organizations, allows restaurants, caterers, and individuals to enter their location and have extra food picked up by a vehicle driven by volunteers.

Between July 21 and 29, the app collected 11,239 pounds of food, enough for 9,366 meals, city officials said Thursday.

Mitch Little, executive director of the Mayor's Office of Community Empowerment and Opportunity, said the average donation size was 50 pounds and at least 26 drivers volunteered to transport the food.

City officials said the app has been downloaded 300 times.

It had been unclear whether the app would continue post-DNC, but because of its success, Little said it would continue to be used for food donation.

Little's office was one of the organizations that collaborated with Food Connect on the app.

Donors can download the app and immediately request a pickup of food for donation. Those who wish to receive donations must register on the Food Connect website.

Megha Kulshreshtha, founder of Food Connect and a real estate investor, said the app has delivered food to between 10 and 15 groups that supply food to the needy.

"There's a clear demand for this surplus food," she said. "We've just scratched the surface."

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