# Food Finder — Food Waste Story Kit

**For journalists, bloggers, and newsletter writers.** Everything in this
document is cleared for editorial use. Copy, paste, edit, adapt. No
permission needed.

**Press contact:** press@foodfinder.org
**Web:** https://foodfinder.org
**Newsroom:** https://foodfinder.org/press
**Updated:** June 2026

---

## The story in one sentence

A new U.S.-based subscription platform, Food Finder, lets neighbors pass
along unopened, not-expired packaged food to each other for free — with no
payments of any kind permitted between members.

## Why it's a story right now

- **The food-waste number isn't new, but a household-level fix is.** Roughly
  30–40% of the U.S. food supply is wasted (USDA / EPA). The majority is at
  the household level — not restaurants, not farms.
- **Existing solutions are top-down.** Food banks, rescue orgs, paid delivery
  apps. Food Finder is the first U.S. subscription platform built around
  *neighbors* trading directly with neighbors.
- **The no-money rule is structural, not aspirational.** Payments between
  members are prohibited on and off the platform. Food cannot be monetized.
  That's a deliberate product decision, not a guideline.
- **Sharers and Finders are the same people.** The household with an extra
  box of cereal this week is the one picking up a case of seltzer the next.
  That reciprocity is what makes peer-to-peer food sharing sustainable where
  charity framing has historically struggled.

## Key stats (with sources)

| Stat | Source |
|---|---|
| 30–40% of the U.S. food supply is wasted | USDA, "Food Waste FAQs" — https://www.usda.gov/foodwaste/faqs |
| Food is the single largest category of material in U.S. landfills | EPA, "Food: Material-Specific Data" |
| The average U.S. household throws away roughly $1,500 of food per year | USDA / ReFED household waste estimates |
| Household food waste accounts for ~50% of all U.S. food waste | ReFED, "Roadmap to 2030" |

*Please verify figures against the source link before publication; numbers
update annually.*

---

## Ready-to-publish summaries

### 60-word version (drop-in for a news brief or newsletter blurb)

> Food Finder, a new U.S.-based subscription platform, lets neighbors share
> unopened, not-expired packaged food with each other at no cost. Unlike food
> banks or paid delivery apps, members trade directly — the same households
> share one week and find the next. Payments between members are structurally
> prohibited. The food itself is always free. More at foodfinder.org.

### 120-word version (for a blog post lede or roundup item)

> About 30 to 40 percent of the U.S. food supply is wasted, most of it inside
> households. A new subscription platform called Food Finder is taking a
> peer-to-peer approach: members list unopened, not-expired packaged food
> they won't use, and a neighbor nearby picks it up — no money changes hands.
> Unlike charitable food programs, Food Finder is structured as a reciprocal
> exchange. The same members who share food one week often find it the next.
> A small subscription fee covers the platform; payments between members are
> structurally prohibited, on and off the service. The platform is U.S.-based
> and not tied to any one city. Learn more at foodfinder.org.

---

## Pull-quote bank (attribute to "Food Finder spokesperson")

> "The 30 to 40 percent food-waste number has been in the headlines for a
> decade, but most people don't have a practical thing to do about it on a
> Tuesday night. Food Finder is that practical thing."

> "We deliberately built the no-money rule into the structure of the product,
> not as a guideline. If food can be monetized, eventually it will be. We
> took that option off the table on day one."

> "Sharers and Finders aren't two different groups of people. They're the
> same neighbors on different days — the household with an extra box of
> cereal this week and the one picking up a case of seltzer the next.
> Everyone is on both sides of the exchange over time. That's what makes it
> sustainable."

For a named, on-the-record interview, email press@foodfinder.org.

---

## Suggested headlines (steal any of these)

- A subscription app for the cereal box you won't eat
- Food waste is a household problem. This new platform treats it like one.
- The case of seltzer you bought by mistake now has a neighbor
- No-money food sharing: a peer-to-peer answer to household food waste
- Not a food bank, not a delivery service — neighbors trading neighbors

## Suggested angles by beat

- **Sustainability / climate:** Household waste is ~50% of U.S. food waste;
  why bottom-up models matter alongside top-down rescue programs.
- **Consumer / personal finance:** The average household throws out ~$1,500
  of food a year; what changes when there's a free, structured way to pass
  it on.
- **Tech / startups:** Why a subscription business model with a hard "no
  payments between members" rule is unusual — and why the founder thinks
  it's necessary.
- **Local / community:** Neighbor-to-neighbor exchange as a re-engagement
  pattern in places where people don't know who lives two doors down.
- **Food / lifestyle:** A practical "Tuesday night" answer to the bulk-store
  haul, the recipe you tried once, and the snacks the kids stopped eating.

---

## Copy-paste social posts

### X / Twitter (under 280 chars)

> 30–40% of U.S. food gets thrown away — mostly inside households. A new
> subscription platform, Food Finder, lets neighbors pass along unopened,
> not-expired food for free. No payments between members, ever. The food is
> always free. https://foodfinder.org

### LinkedIn (short)

> Most food waste in America happens inside households — not on farms, not
> in restaurants. A new U.S.-based platform, Food Finder, is trying a
> peer-to-peer fix: a subscription service where neighbors pass along
> unopened, not-expired packaged food for free. No payments between members,
> on or off the platform. Worth a look if you write or work on food, waste,
> or community tech. https://foodfinder.org

### Threads / Bluesky / Mastodon

> Quiet but interesting launch: Food Finder, a subscription platform where
> neighbors share unopened, not-expired packaged food for free. Structurally
> no payments between members. Reciprocal — same people share and find.
> https://foodfinder.org

### Email newsletter blurb

> **Food Finder (foodfinder.org)** — new U.S. subscription platform for
> neighbor-to-neighbor food sharing. Members list unopened, not-expired
> packaged food they won't use; a neighbor picks it up at no cost. No
> payments between members are permitted, on or off the platform. A
> peer-to-peer take on the household food-waste problem.

---

## What you can/can't say

**OK to say:**
- "Subscription-based platform"
- "Neighbors share unopened, not-expired packaged food"
- "U.S.-based company"
- "Food is always free between members"
- "No payments of any kind between members"
- "Sharers and Finders are the same neighbors on different days"

**Please avoid:**
- "Meal sharing" / "meal" / "meals" — this is about *packaged food items*,
  not prepared food.
- "Donations" / "charity" / "people in need" — Food Finder is a reciprocal
  neighbor exchange, not a charitable program.
- "Trusted food" / "verified food" / "safe meals" — we don't make
  food-safety claims; members inspect items at handoff.
- "Tipping" or "pay-what-you-want" — payments between members are
  structurally prohibited.

---

## Brand assets

All available at https://foodfinder.org/press — logo (SVG + PNG), wordmark,
OG images, color palette, and the full media kit manifest.

## Boilerplate (paste at the end of a story)

> Food Finder is a U.S.-based company operating a subscription-based platform
> for neighbor-to-neighbor food sharing. The platform's mission is to reduce
> household food waste by making it as easy to pass along an unopened item as
> it is to throw it out — connecting Sharers and Finders within the same
> neighborhoods, with food that is always free and no payments of any kind
> between members. Learn more at foodfinder.org.

## Press contact

**Email:** press@foodfinder.org
**Response time:** Within 48 hours on business days
**Structured inquiries:** https://foodfinder.org/press-partnerships