September 27, 2019 — Several pantries, soup kitchens, and a women’s shelter in New Jersey are the beneficiaries of fresh seafood thanks to a pilot program that began in August.
At a press conference in Point Pleasant Beach last week, Fulfill (formerly The FoodBank of Monmouth and Ocean Counties), America’s Gleaned Seafood of Lavallette, and Trinity Seafood of Lakewood announced the New Jersey Seafood Gleaning Pilot Program.
The growing movement seeks to increase food security and reduce food waste by utilizing the approximately 20 percent of seafood that is discarded by United States fisheries annually for consumption.
“Gleaning is an important tool in the fight against hunger. Perfectly good fish are routinely getting thrown overboard or worse — thrown in a dumpster. What a waste, especially considering one in ten people don’t know where their next meal is coming from,” said Fulfill CEO and President Kim Guadagno, New Jersey’s former Lieutenant Governor, at the Fishermen’s Dock Cooperative in Point Pleasant Beach.