Oak Park-based food rescue Forgotten Harvest is teaming up with WDIV-Channel 4 to host its first on-air appeal for cash donations Nov. 30.

“The food is out there. We just have to be able to get it,” said Russ Russell, chief development officer at Forgotten Harvest.

Forgotten Harvest, which can rescue and distribute a pound of surplus perishable food for about 18 cents, hopes to raise at least $300,000through the “Good Neighbor” telethon, he said.

Forgotten Harvest rescued more than 12.5 million pounds of surplus food during fiscal 2009 from more than 400 grocery stores, produce markets, restaurants, caterers, dairies, farmers, wholesale food distributors and other sources.

The food went to 155 emergency food providers in Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties, but 26 percent of those agencies are running out of food, Russell said.

And Forgotten Harvest projects it will only get worse, with more than 10,000 people in Macomb County alone expected to fall off of unemployment benefits in January.

The food rescue has set a goal to rescue 18 million pounds of food this year, Russell said. To do that, it will need to put more trucks on the road.

It’s awaiting word on the donation of several new trucks, he said. But the cost of operating each of those trucks annually is between $65,000 and $75,000.

A number of companies have committed challenge grants to help raise matching funds during the telethon, provided Forgotten Harvest raises at least $50,000. Those companies and their grants are:

• PNC Foundation: $50,000

• Kroger: $30,000

• Art Van Furniture: $25,000

• Busch Markets: $25,000

• Jewish Fund: $10,000

The Detroit Pistons, Detroit Red Wings and Detroit Tigers also have donated pairs of tickets for giveaways to telethon donors who contribute $100 or more during designated times.

Forgotten Harvest to Benefit from Three Local Stores’ Wine and Holiday Catering Menu Tasting Events.
For many, the pressure to prepare delicious and beautiful dishes for holiday guests causes a great deal of stress. Whole Foods Market’s Troy, West Bloomfield and Rochester Hills locations are holding events to offer tips to people preparing for holiday meals, while also helping Forgotten Harvest. Guests will have the opportunity to sample the stores’ catering menu holiday fare and learn what wines pair well with each dish. The events benefit Forgotten Harvest, a nonprofit that works to relieve hunger in the Detroit metropolitan community by rescuing and donating food to emergency food providers.

Forgotten Harvest will be present at each store, armed with shopping lists of the perishable items most needed by Metro Detroit residences. The $10 entry fee for the tasting event is waived if participants purchase and donate items from the list.

Ford Motor Company Fund and Community Services announced today it is teaming up with local dealers and food agencies to deliver 575,000 meals this summer to the hungry in southeastern Michigan, where a tough economy is contributing to a rise in families struggling to meet basic food needs.

Teaming up with Ford to deliver meals to the hungry this summer are two Ford franchises of The Suburban Collection (Suburban Ford of Sterling Heights and Suburban Ford of Waterford), Gleaners Community Food Bank of Southeastern Michigan, Forgotten Harvest and United Way for Southeastern Michigan.

Through the team effort, Ford will bolster Gleaners' and Forgotten Harvest's food distribution with additional vehicles from The Suburban Collection. Additionally, United Way's "211" help line will direct people in need to meal distribution locations operated by Gleaners and Forgotten Harvest.

Also, Ford Fund and Ford Motor Company are donating $50,000 to Gleaners for food purchases and $100,000 to Forgotten Harvest for short-term leases of refrigerated trucks and fresh food acquisition. READ MORE HERE

Reusing your own bags now helps more than ever with Whole Foods’ One Dime at a Time program. When customers bring reusable shopping bags to Whole Foods, they receive a 10 cent credit. But beginning July 6th through September 28th, customers can donate their dime credit to Forgotten Harvest at all three Metro Detroit Whole Foods Markets (Rochester, Troy and West Bloomfield). Simply tell your cashier when you check out that you’d like to donate your dimes to Forgotten Harvest. To find the nearest Whole Foods or for more information, visit www.wholefoodsmarket.com.

Forgotten Harvest took delivery today of its first hybrid-powered truck. The Class 7 Freightliner, donated by Daimler Trucks North America, Daimler Financial Services and Johnson Refrigerated Truck Bodies, will enable the organization to rescue 850,000 additional pounds of fresh food on an annual basis at a 30 percent fuel savings.

Susan Goodell, Executive Director of Forgotten Harvest, was presented the keys to the 2009 M2e Hybrid Freightliner diesel-electric truck by Klaus Entenmann, President and CEO of Daimler Financial Services, and Chris Patterson, recently retired President and CEO of Daimler Trucks North America, at Forgotten Harvest’s Metro Detroit facility. Ron Ricci, President of Johnson Refrigerated Truck Bodies of Rice Lake, WI, donated the 20 -foot fiberglass refrigerated truck body with ElectriMax, all-electric refrigeration that will keep the food fresh during deliveries to homeless shelters and social service agencies that feed the hungry throughout Metro Detroit.

“This generous donation by our friends at Daimler Financial, Daimler Trucks and Johnson Refrigerated Truck Bodies is a leap forward in advancing our mission of reducing hunger and waste,” Goodell said. “It will not only improve our operating efficiency by keeping fuel costs down, it will also allow us to direct more donated dollars to distributing food in a way that protects the environment.”


The 31,000-pound Class 7 truck is the fifth truck donated by Daimler Financial Services and Daimler Trucks North America and aftermarket “body builders” in the past four years, bringing Forgotten Harvest’s growing fleet to 21 vehicles.

To read the press release and see photos, go here.

We are proud to announce that for the third consecutive year, Forgotten Harvest has earned the highest 4-Star rating from Charity Navigator, America's premier independent charity evaluator. This highly coveted designation means that Forgotten Harvest is a fiscally efficient and responsible charity, something that certainly counts to our generous donors and supporters

Charity Navigator had this to say about Forgotten Harvest:

Based on the most recent financial information available, we have calculated a new rating for your organization. We are proud to announce Forgotten Harvest has earned our third consecutive 4-star rating for its ability to efficiently manage and grow its finances. Only 11% of the charities we rate have received at least 3 consecutive 4-star evaluations, indicating that Forgotten Harvest consistently executes its mission in a fiscally responsible way, and outperforms most other charities in America. This “exceptional” designation from Charity Navigator differentiates Forgotten Harvest from its peers and demonstrates to the public it is worthy of their trust.

The link to our page on Charity Navigator can be found here

Eckert’s Greenhouse & Perennials has launched a special program to encourage home gardeners to share their harvest with the hungry in the area. The SEED to FEED project provides free seed packets to Eckert’s customers who pledge to grow vegetables to help feed hungry people. If you’re interested in the SEED to FEED project, you can sign up at Eckert’s store located at 34051 Ryan Road (between 14 and 15 Mile Roads) in Sterling Heights (Ph: 586-264-5678) and in turn, Eckert’s will provide free seeds to grow in your gardens. As you harvest their garden, you simply drop off their produce at Eckert’s where it will be picked up by Forgotten Harvest and distributed to ourr network of emergency food providers.