Food Forward

We help restaurants reduce wasted food, save money, and make a lasting impact.

Overview

Join Food Forward, a free four-month coaching program.

This program is designed to help restaurants:

  • Reduce wasted food
  • Save money
  • Make a lasting impact

Restaurants will sign up for one of three four-month long cohorts to take place in 2025/2026. They’ll work alongside other restaurants to make changes. The main goal is to prevent wasted food and help businesses boost their profits.

Cook working in a restaurant looking for ingredients
Person composting organics

Food Forward interest form

Complete the form to learn more about Food Forward.
Sign up to learn more

Benefits

There are many benefits for restaurants going through this program:

  • Boost profits by cutting down on wasted food
  • Improve kitchen efficiency and the customer experience 
  • Business recognition and promotion for taking action 
  • Hands-on support from experts in:
    • Wasted food prevention
    • Food rescue
    • Organics recycling 
  • Meet and connect with other local restaurants taking action 
  • Get paid for training hours  
  • Earn a Food Forward certificate of completion

Why to prevent wasted food

Wasted food

Restaurants in Minneapolis create 30% of the city’s food waste. Join other restaurants in being part of the solution.

By keeping food from going to waste, you can:

  • Save your restaurant money
  • Feed your community
  • Support the environment

On average, every dollar your restaurant spends on preventing wasted food will save you seven dollars.

Food Forward process

See full process

Orientation

Audit and site visit

Training courses

Strategy selection

Coaching support

Follow up and evaluation

USDA statement

This work is supported by the Composting and Food Waste Reduction cooperative agreement pilot program, project award no. 2025-70510-44325, from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture.

Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and should not be construed to represent any official USDA or U.S. Government determination or policy.

The USDA requires this funding acknowledgement language. See USDA required language

Contact us

Food Forward

Minneapolis Health Department

Email Food Forward

Phone

612-476-1850

Homegrown Minneapolis

Minneapolis Health Department

Email Homegrown Minneapolis

Phone

612-673-3553

Minneapolis Health Department

Email Health Department

Phone

612-673-2301

Address

Public Service Building
505 Fourth Ave. S., Room 520
Minneapolis, MN 55415