GAITHERSBURG, Md. - April 20, 2009 - Next time you're cleaning out your fridge, consider this: Americans throw away more than 25 percent of the food they prepare, impacting the economy and the environment. Food waste is the single-largest component of the waste stream "“ each year, 96 billion pounds of food are tossed out. The US spends about $1 billion a year to dispose of food waste.

Sodexo is raising awareness of this huge problem, with events on campuses from coast to coast this Earth Day, April 22. At several campuses, students will weigh the food they discard after each meal. These Weigh the Waste initiatives could reduce food waste on a campus by as much as 30 percent simply by making the students more aware of what they serve themselves verses what they actually eat.

Sodexo, a leading foodservice provider to 600 campuses in the United States and Canada, sees a vast opportunity to reduce the environmental impact caused by food waste and to call attention to the fact that one person's waste could be another person's treasure.

"Right now, more than 35 million Americans are going hungry every day "“ this makes it even more important to be careful about what we eat "“ not only for the environment and the economy, but to show respect for food and nutrition," said Tom Post, president of Sodexo Campus Services.

On Earth Day 2008, 300 Sodexo-served campuses stopped using trays in cafeterias to reduce food, water, energy and chemical waste. Sodexo studies show that when students stop using trays, food waste is reduced by 30 percent or more.

Campuses participating in Weigh the Waste this Earth Day include: Drexel University in Philadelphia, Fordham University in New York, Gonzaga University in Spokane, University of Denver, Howard University in DC, and Savannah College of Art and Design in Georgia and Hobart and William Smith in Geneva, N.Y.

These programs are part of Sodexo's ongoing commitment to reduce waste, conserve water, provide locally grownand sourced foods and materials and to engage in green cleaning practices in all food service and facilities management client sites globally.

Sodexo, Inc.
Sodexo, Inc. (www.sodexoUSA.com) is a leading integrated facilities management services company in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, with $7.7 billion (USD) in annual revenue and 120,000 employees. Sodexo serves more than ten million customers daily in corporations, health care, long term care and retirement centers, schools, college campuses, government, and remote sites. Sodexo, Inc., headquartered in Gaithersburg, Md., is a member of Sodexo Group, and funds all administrative costs for the Sodexo Foundation (www.sodexofoundation.org), an independent charitable organization that, since its founding in 1999, has made more than $11 million in grants to fight hunger in America.

Sodexo

Sodexo

Sodexo, Inc. (www.sodexoUSA.com ) is a leading integrated facilities management services company in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, with $7.7 billion (USD) in annual revenue and 120,000 employees. Sodexo serves more than ten million customers daily in corporations, health care, long term care and retirement centers, schools, college campuses, government, and remote sites. Sodexo, Inc., headquartered in Gaithersburg, Md., is a member of Sodexo Group, and funds all administrative costs for the Sodexo Foundation (www.sodexofoundation.org ), an independent charitable organization that, since its founding in 1999, has made more than $11 million in grants to fight hunger in America.

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