—Rescue Food
Rescue Food makes sure surplus good food keeps moving to people who need it. The program empowers volunteers to connect food donors with service agencies distributing food to vulnerable members of our communities.
Here at Leftovers, rescuing food is what we do! The Rescue Food program uses a dedicated app to mobilize and organize volunteers, connecting vendors with excess good food to service agencies in need of food donations for clients experiencing crisis hunger. This program operates in Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Hinton, Airdrie, Red Deer, and Lethbridge.
1,134,322 lbs redirected in 2024
1,576,699 lbs of CO₂ equivalents diverted in 2024
8,067 routes were completed in 2024
Impact Genome Verified
The Rescue Food program in Alberta is Impact Verified by Impact Genome.
The Impact Genome Registry is the world’s largest repository for standardized impact data, covering more than 2.2 million global nonprofits and social programs. It catalogues essential data—outcomes, strategies, costs, and evidence quality—allowing us to quantify the annual impact of any program. Like carbon registries for environmental impact, the Impact Genome Registry turns social impact into a measurable currency. All data is validated and verified by trained evaluators, with peer-reviewed verification standards curated by experts, practitioners, and academics. Verified programs receive Verified Impact Credits, transforming their outcomes into assets funders can trust.
Rescue Food Calgary
The longest-running of our Rescue Food programs, Rescue Food Calgary began with Lourdes Juan’s first trip from a Calgary bakery to a drop-in centre in 2012. Since then, the program has grown exponentially, from rescuing food at the Calgary Stampede in 2017 to redirecting over 200,000 lbs of food during the first months of pandemic lockdowns in 2020.
Rescue Food Calgary also facilitates large-scale donations, with pallets of donated food broken down and distributed from our warehouse, often to service agencies still on the waitlist for regular deliveries through the app.
196,966 lbs redirected in 2024
273,781 lbs of CO₂ equivalents diverted in 2024
2,546 routes were completed in 2024
For more information about Rescue Food Calgary, please contact our Calgary City Coordinator, Liz Dill, [email protected].
Rescue Food Edmonton
In 2017, the Rescue Food program expanded to Edmonton, and since then, the program has grown to equal Calgary in volume. In 2021, our WastED Webinar presented different perspectives on food rescue, waste reduction, and the need for food access programming in Edmonton. (Check out some of those episodes here!)
In 2024, Leftovers launched a pilot project offering both food rescue and composting services to businesses in Sherwood Park and Westlock. This project was launched in cooperation with the Circular Innovation Council and Strathcona County.
Rescue Food Edmonton runs without a home base, meaning that all of the food we redistribute in Edmonton is done by volunteer drivers (or cyclists or walkers!) through the app. We also operate in the surrounding area, including Spruce Grove and Sherwood Park. Look for us tabling at events throughout the city!
179,539 lbs redirected in 2024
249,557 lbs of CO₂ equivalents diverted in 2024
2,113 routes were completed in 2024
For more information about Rescue Food Edmonton, please contact our Edmonton City Coordinator, Jan SMan, [email protected].
Rescue Food Winnipeg
Rescue Food Winnipeg launched in November 2020 and quickly became our highest volume Rescue Food program. Working closely with Red River Co-op, Rescue Food Winnipeg redirects, on average, more than 50,000 lbs of food per month! Much of that food comes through the Winnipeg warehouse, where dedicated volunteers break down large-scale donations for distribution to service agencies who can use the food to feed vulnerable Winnipeggers.
Look for us tabling at the Wolseley Farmers Market this summer!
621,526 lbs redirected
in 2024
863,920 lbs of CO₂ equivalents diverted in 2024
2,165 routes were completed in 2024
For more information about Rescue Food Winnipeg, please contact our Winnipeg City Coordinator, Alyssa Wolfe, [email protected].
Rescue Food Lethbridge
Since 2023, we have been rescuing food in Lethbridge! You can find us tabling and participating in community events throughout the year. We are overjoyed to be collaborating with Volunteer Lethbridge and other local organizations.
13,301 lbs redirected
in 2024
18,488 of CO₂ equivalents diverted in 2024
160 routes were completed in 2024
For more information about Rescue Food Lethbridge, please contact our Lethbridge City Coordinator, Beverley Beckley, [email protected].
Rescue Food Red Deer
We have been rescuing food in Red Deer since the summer of 2023! Find us attending events and tabling around the city this summer of 2024. We are active members of the Red Deer Chamber of Commerce and currently engaging with many community organizations.
3,966 lbs redirected
in 2024
5,512 of CO₂ equivalents diverted in 2024
242 routes were completed in 2024
For more information about Rescue Food Red Deer, please contact our Red Deer City Coordinator, Beverley Beckley, [email protected].
As a volunteer, you choose what routes work best for you. Download our app to start rescuing and delivering food.
Want to donate food or receive food? Read about how food donors and service agencies can get involved.
