Clark County Green Neighbors encourages residents to reduce their food waste by participating in the 2022 WasteBusters Challenge: food waste prevention edition!

Food waste has increasing environmental impacts on a local, national, and international stage. In 2018, the Washington Department of Ecology recorded 479,428 tons of wasted edible food, an increase of almost 100,000 tons from 2015.

The 21-day WasteBusters Challenge is March 1-21 and participants can join as individuals or as a team. Participants can reduce their environmental impact by committing to one of three pledges:

• reduce meat intake by one day per week
• organize and rotate food in the refrigerator to prioritize consuming food before it expires
• plan and stick to a shopping list during grocery shopping

The challenge kicks off with a virtual event 6-7:15 pm Monday, Feb. 28. Guest speaker Monika Spykerman, Columbian staff writer, will share her story of reducing food waste and the rewards in doing so. People attending the free kick-off event will also learn more about this year’s challenge.

People who join the WasteBusters challenge will be supported by fellow participants and the WasteBusters team. The challenge’s easy-to-use online platform provides tips, tricks, and additional resources to help participants accomplish their waste-busting goals.

Participants will earn points by attending virtual events, completing weekly challenges, participating in reflections about their food waste journey, and more. At the end of the 21 days, the highest point-earner and the team with the highest number of points will earn a prize. And every participant earning 500 points or more will be entered into a raffle to win a grand prize.

Learn more about the challenge on the WasteBusters website and register for the kick-off event online.