How Event Planners Can Redirect Surplus Food (Feed people not landfills)

The US wastes roughly between 60-100 million tons of food every year while 47 million Americans face food insecurity. Event planners sit at the middle of that gap every single time a buffet gets broken down and the leftovers go in the trash. In this episode, Tammy sits down with Robert Lee, CEO of Rescuing Leftover Cuisine (RLC), to break down how food rescue actually works, why the liability fears most planners have are largely a myth, and what you can do at your very next event to be part of the solution. What you'll learn: -Understand how a real food rescue operates, from end-of-event pickup to delivery, so you know exactly what to plan for -Identify the actual barriers to food donation at events (and which ones are real versus assumed) -Know your legal protections as a food donor under the Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Food Donation Act -Add food rescue into your standard RFP and caterer conversations before your next event -Translate food rescue impact into measurable ESG metrics for corporate clients What's the single biggest barrier you've hit when trying to do something about food waste at your events? Drop it in the comments — venue, caterer, client, or something else. We want to know where the real friction is. RESOURCES RLC Website - https://www.rescuingleftovercuisine.org/ Robert Lee's LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/robertlee2/ Robert Lee's Book - https://a.co/d/0fAGXAXP SOURCES https://www.ers.usda.gov/topics/food-nutrition-assistance/food-security-in-the-us/key-statistics-graphics https://frac.org/news/usdafoodsecurityreportdec2025 https://www.epa.gov/facts-and-figures-about-materials-waste-and-recycling/food-material-specific-data https://www.statista.com/topics/1623/food-waste/