Off the road: With Becca Handford

I am one of the Operations Coordinators here at Lovin’ Spoonfuls. Week-to-week you can probably find me doing some data reporting, corresponding with our nonprofit and vendor partners, and working on some department projects, like onboarding new partners for the launch of our Worcester County route. I also triage calls from our Food Rescue Coordinators (FRCs), who don’t always have time in their days to troubleshoot. I, alongside the other Operations Coordinator, am there to help.

Growing up, I was always taught the importance of food and why it should never be wasted. My mum always told us that we were lucky to have access to such good food on a regular basis, and I never wanted to take that for granted. Seeing so much food waste in the world really aggravates me, so when I stumbled into food justice work in college, and then found out about the food rescue work that Spoonfuls was doing, I knew I wanted to be involved personally.

Repurpose your leftovers! I don’t think anyone likes eating the exact same thing for a whole week, but you’d be surprised how many different meals you can make out of one prepped item. Last week I prepped some lemongrass tofu and left it marinating in a tupperware, so all I had to do was cook it up whenever I needed a meal. It was delicious, and I probably ate it four or five different ways throughout the week!

I try not to buy a ton of disposable or single-use things, and I try to use reusable items as much as possible like lunch boxes, utensils, thermoses, metal straws, reusable shopping bags, etc. I’m looking to get reusable produce bags for grocery shopping and silicone baking mats for cooking at home as well!

Recently I’ve been taking part in a five-part online series led by the u003ca href=u0022https://foodsystems.centers.vt.edu/events-and-speakers/UpcomingEvents/REALFellowship.htmlu0022u003eRacial Equity in Agriculture Labu003c/au003e, and their work towards increased agricultural opportunities for Black farmers is incredible. Calling to attention hundreds of years of systemic racism in the way our food systems were built and still operates is crucial to food and environmental justice work. I’m so glad they’re willing to educate folks and be a catalytic force for change.

Tailgate 2019 [Spoonfuls’ signature annual fundraiser] was definitely a highlight for me – so many great friends and great food that night! Sharing food together is such a great way for people to connect! I think I ate half my weight in cheesy bread that night alongside some fantastic peers. I’m excited for it to finally be back in person this fall!