Groveport Messenger - October 2nd, 2022

PAGE 6 - GROVEPORT MESSENGER - October 2, 2022
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SWACO working to help families reduce food waste
As inflation increases food prices,
SWACO is renewing efforts to help families
save money and reduce their reliance on
the landfill by helping them avoid throwing
leftovers and other food in the trash.
“We may not be able to control rising gas
and food prices,” said Joe Lombardi,
SWACO’s executive director. “But each of
us can commit to making the most of our
resources and ease the burden felt by our
family and the environment when food
waste is sent to the landfill.”
Reducing food waste remains an important
issue for central Ohioans. In a public
opinion poll conducted earlier this year, 83
percent of residents were concerned with
the amount of food wasted every day in
central Ohio. A 2019 Waste
Characterization Study, published by
SWACO, documented that nearly a million
pounds of food arrives at the county landfill
every day, and a large portion of that food
comes from households.
Kyle O’Keefe, SWACO’s director of innovation
and programs, said the average
Franklin County family is spending nearly
$2,000 a year on food they purchase but
never eat.
“Leftovers and spoiled produce make up
the majority of what individuals throw
out,” said O’Keefe. “Families can easily
save money and keep unnecessary food
waste out of a landfill by making small
improvements in the way they manage
food.”
SWACO’s Save More Than Food (SMTF)
website offers ideas on making those simple
and intentional steps part of anyone’s
daily routine:
• Fridge Night prompts families to collect
leftovers and look for creative ideas to
bring them together. It also lets families
properly freeze and date any leftovers a
family can’t use.
• Label foods and leftovers that need to
be eaten soon or place them within eyesight.
• Make leftovers new again by visiting
SaveMoreThanFod.org to find a leftover
recipe to demonstrate or try.
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• Shopping more frequently and with a
list reduces cost and waste. Creating meal
plans makes those trips much easier.
• Proper food storage allows herbs,
milk, cheese, fruits, and vegetables to have
a much longer life in refrigerators.
SMTF pilot programs are already paying
dividends, reducing household food
waste by more than 20 percent in areas
where food waste drop-off sites and educational
programs that encourage food waste
prevention are available.
The Central Ohio Food Waste Initiative
published a food waste action plan in May
2019; it has 20 specific initiatives for preventing
food waste, rescuing and redistributing
edible food, and recycling food
through composting and other technologies.
Overall, the SMTF campaign hopes to
help reduce food waste by 50 percent by
2030.
“When families come together and use
food responsibly, it creates better health,
environmental, and economic outcomes,”
said Lombardi. “We can blaze a trail
toward a healthier future, one bite at a
time.”
By Rick Palsgrove
Groveport Editor
Groveport’s Blacklick Haunted Park
returns for its fifth year with a host of
ghouls, monsters, and other assorted
things that go bump in the night to give
visitors a Halloween fright.
The scary event, sponsored by the city of
Groveport and Groveport residents, will be
held Oct 14 and 15 from 7:30-11 p.m. A
special afternoon event for younger kids
will be held Oct. 15 from 1-4 p.m.
Blacklick Haunted Park is held in
Blacklick Park, 799 Blacklick St. (The park
is located at the eastern end of Blacklick
Street in Groveport.) Cost is $5 per person
with proceeds going to Groveport Madison
Human Needs and the Groveport Food
Pantry. Organizers said the night event on
Oct. 14 and Oct. 15 is very scary and
parental discretion is advised.
However, the special afternoon session
for the younger kids on Oct. 15 will be a bit
less scary. Kids at this event must be
accompanied by a parent or guardian. The
first 200 kids at the Oct. 15 afternoon
event will receive a free goodie bag.
The idea for Blacklick Haunted Park
arose in 2017 from three friends who share
a love of Halloween — Bruce Smith, Scott
Clinger, and Larry Geis. They came up
with the idea for the haunted park as a
way to raise money for Groveport Madison
Human Needs and the Groveport Food
Pantry while also providing an outlet for
frightening fun.
“Each of us has set up elaborate ‘haunted
houses’ at our own homes during trickor-treat
in the past and we always wanted
Residents and businesses alike can visit
savemorethanfood.org for information to
help reduce food waste at home and work
The site also features an online food waste
quiz and shareable resources for co-workers,
students, and communities.
About Save More Than Food
Save More Than Food was developed in
2019, following several months of collaboration
among more than 100 partners in
the Central Ohio Food Waste Initiative collective.
Initiative members created the
Central Ohio Food Waste Action Plan
which includes 20 solutions for reducing
food waste, including the creation of a consumer
action and education campaign.
About SWACO
SWACO serves Franklin County and
neighboring areas with solutions for solid
waste. It is one of 52 solid waste districts
created by the Ohio General Assembly in
1989. These districts were established with
the mission of reducing reliance on landfills.
Acting upon that mission, SWACO
provides consumers with recycling and
waste diversion opportunities throughout
Franklin County.
Haunted Park returns
Messenger photo by Rick Palsgrove
Blacklick Haunted Park returns for its
fifth year of frightening fun in Groveport.
to do something bigger like this,” Bruce
Smith, one of the organizers, said in a past
interview.
Blacklick Haunted Park consists of a
large area at the park’s shelterhouse and a
haunted trail filled with relentlessly scary
costumed monsters, as well as fearsome
scenes and eerie music.
“People have fun, we have fun, and
we’re able to help out Groveport Madison
Human Needs and the Groveport Food
Pantry,” said Smith. “We love to do it.
We’re thankful to the city of Groveport for
its help in enabling Blacklick Haunted
Park to be successful.”
For information call (614) 836-3333.