Bloom plan – how to guide

Bakery

Dairy

Deli

Meat & Seafood

Produce

Grocery

All unsold product is donated to a local charity hub who then sorts the food into what’s edible for people, what’s edible for animal consumption and the rest is composted. This program is recovering over 90% of what was previously wasted food and diverting it to feed people and animals.

Keeping food products separated by department allows the weights to be more easily measured to determine the amount of waste being generated.

Only food that is UNSAFE for human AND animal consumption should be marked with a red sticker on the tote. This communicates to the food bank that the products are UNSAFE and should be disposed. Please always place the stickers on the TOP of the tote in a highly visible location.

Please line totes with plastic bags if the products are very wet or messy. For example, veggie trim from the Produce department, leaking milk jugs from the Dairy department, or leaking blood from the Meat/Seafood department.

Please use clear plastic bags. We recommend the following item: Ralston® Regular Garbage Bags, Translucent, 35X50 – 29650. You may also use any kind of clear bags you have on hand that fits the totes. Clear garbage bags or bulk bin liners also work well.

The food bank will pick up the filled totes each day and leave behind an equal number of clean, empty totes. Let your store receiver know if you need more totes and they will ask the food bank driver to provide a few extras. If you run out of totes during the day then please package your donations in stackable cardboard boxes with lids, such as empty banana boxes from the produce department or bread boxes from the bakery department.

Because we cannot be certain what happens to food once it has left the store, customer returns should always be marked as inedible. Please use a tote marked with a red sticker to show that the products are inedible.

Yes! Place any items in a tote or box with a red sticker to let the Food Bank know that they are no longer safe for human consumption.

Please store cakes and pastries containing dairy, or other spoilable substances, in a temperature controlled location until the charity pickup time.

Place any items in totes marked with a red sticker to show they are UNSAFE to eat if they are spoiled, contaminated, have been out of temperature control (and it’s required it to maintain food safety), or have been returned by a customer.

Yes! The charity will check the Best Before dates when sorting the products and determine whether they can be safely distributed.

Normally the glass milk bottles should be returned to the producer for deposit refunds. Check with your department manager about whether these should be donated or not.

Place any items in totes marked with a red sticker to show they are UNSAFE to eat if they are spoiled, contaminated, have been out of temperature control, or have been returned by a customer.

No, you can send the unsaleable produce to the food bank in the boxes it’s already packed in, provided they are stackable on a pallet. For example, boxes of bananas, or flats of strawberry clamshells.

Please place products in glass jars separately from unpackaged produce. If the glass breaks, it could injure the volunteer sorting the product. It can also contaminate the entire tote, meaning all the produce will need to be disposed.

Yes, but please package the plants in cardboard boxes or plastic-lined totes to avoid cross-contamination from the soil. The food bank will distribute to their clients first and then will send to farm or compost as appropriate.

Yes, floral trim should go in a plastic-bag lined tote and will be sent to farm or composted as appropriate.

If the answer to the following questions is YES then the item is UNSAFE to eat and should go into a tote marked with a red sticker:

• Is the meat or seafood past the Best Before date?
• Does the item look or smell spoiled?
• Is the packaging compromised (e.g., holes in packaging)?
• Was the item out of temperature control?
• Is this a customer-returned item?

We have a lot of day-of Best Before meat that’s inedible because it gets picked up by the Food Bank the next day. How can we recover more of it?

If space permits in the meat freezer, we recommend the following process for recovering more day-of meat shrink:

• Place the empty edible meat totes in the meat freezer at the beginning of each day
• Shrink meat products that are fit for human consumption into the edible totes in the freezer throughout the day
• The inedible meat totes continue to be kept in the meat cooler to avoid confusion
• All meat totes are picked up daily as per existing process

Always place raw meat and seafood items in plastic-lined totes. Keep raw meat and seafood separated from prepared and vacuum-packed meats to avoid cross contamination. Don’t mix raw seafood with raw poultry, beef or pork to avoid cross contamination.

Yes, they can be donated to charity as long as they are packaged, labeled with the product name and the Best Before date, placed in totes, and kept under temperature control until pickup. If more convenient, salads can be mixed together in a plastic-lined tote marked with a red sticker and will be diverted to farm or compost as appropriate.

Yes, they can be donated to charity as long as they are packaged, labeled with the product name and the Best Before date, placed in totes, and kept under temperature control until pickup. If more convenient, deli meat ends can be mixed together in a plastic-lined tote marked with a red sticker and will be diverted to compost.

Place any items in totes marked with a red sticker to show they are UNSAFE to eat if they are spoiled, contaminated, have been out of temperature control, or have been returned by a customer.

Yes, they can be donated to charity if frozen. Please freeze in sealable bags (Ziploc or similar) and label with the soup type and the Best Before date. Place frozen soup bags in totes and keep frozen until pickup. If more convenient, soups can be drained and the solids can be mixed together in a plastic-lined tote marked with a red sticker and will be diverted to compost.

Yes, they can be donated to charity as long as they are packaged, labeled with the product name and the Best Before date, cooled to below 4C in accordance with Food Safe guidelines, placed in totes, and kept under temperature control until pickup. If more convenient, they can be mixed together in a plastic-lined tote marked with a red sticker and will be diverted to compost.

Charities need to know the contents of bags of bulk items in order to distribute them to their recipients due to allergen risks. If packaging items individually isn’t practical, then the bulk items can be put in the totes directly (or in a plastic lined tote if messy) and they will be sent to farmers or compost as appropriate.

Do not send any food that has been infested with insects. Talk to you department manager or store manager about how to handle disposal of infested product.

Place any items in totes marked with a red sticker to show they are UNSAFE to eat if they are spoiled, contaminated, or have been returned by a customer.

Boxed grocery items do not need to be transferred to totes. They can be left in their current boxes as long as the boxes are sturdy and stackable.

Yes, household items such as toilet paper, cleaning supplies and seasonal decorations can be donated. Use a plastic-lined tote if the non-food items might spill and contaminate it so it’s no longer food safe (e.g. laundry detergent or bleach).

Grocery and frozen items are inedible if the packaging is ripped or damaged in a way that the food may have been contaminated. Frozen items that haven’t maintained temperature control are always inedible. Customer returns should always be marked as inedible. Please use a tote marked with a red sticker to show that the products are UNSAFE to eat.