Project SERVE

Project SERVE's mission is to use innovation and service to impact our communities.

At National Food Group, food is the core of our business and drives all that we do, including our Corporate Social Responsibility strategy. We pledge a minimum of 5% of our earnings, along with our time and talents - making food more accessible, providing opportunities and resources for individuals seeking a career in the food industry, and supporting our global environment.


We are proud to share what 2023 brought us in our Project SERVE annual report
Click Here To Download The 2023 Project SERVE Annual Report

 

Project SERVE Key Initiatives

Our corporate social responsibility initiatives allows us to divide our resources into five areas of focus that allow us to honor our commitment to the community. The five program initiatives include:

	Secure Food & Funding Help alleviate food insecurity by matching food and funds with communities in need.
	Educate Provide opportunities and resources for students of all ages and backgrounds to learn about the food industry and its many career paths.
	Respect Diversity Focus on being a leader in the industry for an inclusive and equitable environment.
	Volunteer Improve the lives of our neighbors through use of our time, talents, and treasures.
	Elevate Sustainability Continue and expand sustainability practices at National Food Group with help from our customers and vendors.

How We Got Here

As our company grows, so does our commitment to the community. According to the USDA, 44 million people, including 8 million children, are food insecure and every community in the country is home to a family that is food insecure. Through Project SERVE and its initiatives, we are working each day to feed local families, reduce food waste, and help break down barriers to employment.

Over the past 8 years we have shared:

• Rescued and redirected more than 70 million pounds of food from waste

• Contributed more than $5 million in resources to non-profits
  and community organizations

• Volunteered more than 3,000 hours in our communities

• Partner with key community stakeholders to distribute food to the greatest need
• Use National Food Group resources to assess and eliminate issues with food accessibility
• Participate in community focused programs on preparing affordable and nutritious meals
• Work with National Food Group vendors and customers to support food accessibility in their own communities

• Offer student scholarships to help provide culinary training to secure employment in the food industry
• Organize internships to give real experience to high school and college student
• Attend career days at schools to encourage and educate a diverse population on the food industry
• Partner with local agencies and programs to teach children about healthy and affordable eating to support food accessibility in their own communities
• Break down barriers to employment in the food industry

• Celebrate the diversity in our world and within our teams
• Strengthen current policy of inclusion by incorporating implicit bias training in our onboarding and for current employees
• Expand current recruiting pools to include a more diverse candidate base. (targeted advertisement, recruitment fairs, and personal connections)
• Partner with local organizations and schools to recruit interns from high need communities and provide resources to any barriers students may have

• Support National Food Group employees in donating 1000 hour of their time to local organizations
• Provide a $500 grant to any organization with at least 30 hours of NFG collective employee volunteer service
• Sponsor community events and programs that engage employees, partners and customers
• Participate at a leadership level in organizations that support Project SERVE initiatives

• Help reduce food waste through programs such as Opportunity Buys® that redirects wholesome, quality food to new markets
• Employ environmental sustainability practices in our offices where possible, like LED and motion sensor lights, water bottle filling stations, and recycling programs
• Partner with customers to meet zero waste and environmental programs
• Enable our Logistics teams to optimize shipping loads for efficient fuel use
• Employ recyclable and/or sustainably sourced packaging where possible
• Seek out suppliers that are using sustainable practices

Industry Partner

National Food Group is proud to support:

Forgotten Harvest		Feeding America		United Way for Southeastern Michigan
Food recovery verified		Soil 2 Service		Alternatives For Girls
		Kids Food Basket

Project SERVE Videos

Thank you for being interested in Project SERVE.

Project SERVE is our corporate social responsibility strategy, where we pledge a minimum of 5% of our earnings, along with our time and talents, to help make food more accessible, provide opportunities and resources for individuals seeking a career in the food industry, and support our global environment. Please refer to the Project SERVE (Secure Food & Funding, Educate, Respect Diversity, Volunteer, Elevate Sustainability) pillars for our organization's criteria.

We get many applications, so you will be contacted only if there is more interest. Only registered 501c3s will be considered. If you are a social media content creator, please fill out a Z Team application here.

We cannot accept applications from the following:

• Advocacy-directed programs, animal rights organizations, species-specific organizations
• Parent groups, parties, or personal events
• Beauty or talent contests, sports teams, golf outings
• Day-to-day operations or debt reduction initiatives for businesses, labor groups or nonprofits
• Efforts to influence legislation, or the outcome of any elections, or any specific election of candidates to public office, or to carry on any voter registration drive, political contributions
• Endowments, fraternal organizations, organizations that do not have 501(c)(3) status, private K-12 schools, religious programs or sectarian programs for religious purposes
• General operating support to hospitals and healthcare institutions
• Individual sponsorships related to fundraising activities, individuals, sports, and race teams
• Organizations that unlawfully discriminate in their provision of goods and services based on race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, ethnicity, sexual orientation, national origin, physical challenge, age, or status as a protected veteran

Fill out the application if you want to be considered. The application must be completed in full.

Connect with us:

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