You probably already know that Americans waste too much food.  This summer, comedian and political commentator John Oliver broke down why the problem is much worse than you may realize – and he offered some practical solutions for what to do about it.

According to the Natural Resources Defense Council, as much as 40 percent of the food produced in the U.S. never gets eaten and Americans throw away $165 billion worth of food every year, roughly 20 pounds per person every month. That’s enough waste to annually fill 730 football stadiums.

You may be wondering how this is possible in a country where so many are hungry.  A recent USDA report found that in 2013, 49.1 million people lived in food-insecure households.

And what becomes of all that food waste?  The rotting food produces methane gas – a potent contributor to global warming.  “When we dump food into a landfill,” Oliver explains, “we’re essentially throwing a trash blanket over a flatulent food man and Dutch-ovening the entire planet.”

UMD is tackling food waste in several ways:

• Dining Services has taken on a variety of sustainability initiatives, including FreeFills, expanded composting in the dining halls and The Stamp Student Union, and ozzi machines allowing students to return their used containers.
• The Campus Pantry provides emergency food for students, faculty and staff experiencing hardship.
• The Food Recovery Network was started by UMD alums and continues to recover perishable food that would otherwise go to waste.