Since 2022, Waste Wise Lane County has helped raise awareness of Food Waste Prevention Week (Sept. 28-Oct. 4) through social media campaigns, community events, and outreach to local restaurants and residents about practical ways to prevent food waste.

This year, in partnership with the Lane County Farmers Market and City of Eugene Waste Prevention, we’re planning a fun community event for Saturday, Oct. 3, at the Saturday Farmers Market. We can’t share all the details just yet, but please save the date and be on the lookout for more information soon.

Food Waste Prevention Week is an opportunity to think about more than what ends up in our garbage or compost bins. It’s also a reminder of the value of food itself—and how fortunate many of us are to have reliable access to nutritious food. For too many of our neighbors, especially as households face rising costs for food, housing, utilities, and other necessities, that access is far from guaranteed.

According to a 2024 analysis by Feeding America, approximately 16.2 % of Lane County residents experience food insecurity,  meaning they lack consistent access to enough food to live an active, healthy life.  Behind that percentage are thousands of our neighbors making difficult choices about how to stretch limited household resources.

The reality is sobering, but also highlights the importance of the many organizations, volunteers, and community members working every day to make sure good food reaches people who can use it.

One great example is Burrito Brigade’s Little Free Pantries, which provide no-barrier access to food and hygiene essentials for Lane County residents. With 55 pantries across Eugene, Springfield, Veneta, Junction City, Cottage Grove, Oakridge, and Creswell, these 24/7 community resource-hubs operate on a simple, mutual-aid principle: “Take what you need. Give what you can.”

Volunteers regularly stock the pantries with shelf-stable foods such as canned goods, pasta, rice, along with hygiene products and other essentials. Some locations also include community  refrigerators, expanding access to fresh produce and other perishable foods.

For families and individuals struggling with rising grocery costs, Burrito Brigade and other food-access organizations can provide an important lifeline. There is no registration or eligibility checks for the Little Free Pantries. Residents can simply visit a  pantry, day or night, and take what they need.

That connection between valuing food, preventing waste, and helping good food reach people is worth remembering during Food Waste Prevention Week. Preventing food waste starts in our own kitchens—with simple actions such as planning meals, buying what we need, storing food properly, and using what we already have. At the community level, it also means recognizing the value of edible food and supporting systems that help put it to its highest and best use: feeding people.

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Fix-It Fair on Sept. 20; Fix-It Booths rounding out repair season

Contact: Mitra Gruwell
E-mail: [email protected]

Join Waste Wise Lane County—a part of Lane County Waste Management—and BRING for a free Fix-It Fair at BRING on Sunday, Sept. 20 from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Bring your broken items and let our technicians repair them at no cost.
 
Additionally, Lane Transit District (LTD) will provide complimentary bus passes for attendees to and from the event. Be on the lookout for more information related to that as we get closer to the date.

Repairs will include the following categories:

• Lamps
• Small Appliances (i.e., hairdryers, kitchen appliances, vacuums, sewing machines, air purifiers, clocks, mixers, watches, etc.)
• Bicycles (provided by Shift Community Cycles)
• Power Tools /Small Lawn Tool Motors (i.e., lawn mowers, chainsaws, drills, saws, battery driven items, etc.)
• Upcycling Activity
• Tool Sharpening (i.e., scissors, loppers, knives, axes, garden tools, etc.)

Meanwhile, another successful Fix-It Booth season is wrapping up around the county in Cottage Grove, Eugene, Florence Farmers Market, Florence Habitat for Humanity, and Oakridge. For a look at the remaining schedule, which will conclude in early October, visit fixitlanecounty.org/calendar or follow Waste Wise Lane County on social media (@WasteWiseLaneCounty).

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First Lane County RecycleOn Center opens at BRING; Florence site coming soon; Labor Day sale returns
 
Contact: BRING Recycling
E-mail: [email protected]
 
Big recycling news: BRING (4446 Franklin Blvd., Eugene) is now an official RecycleOn Oregon Center — and the first one in Lane County! That means you can now bring tricky-to-sort plastics to BRING, including:
 
♻️Plastic bags and stretchy plastic film
♻️Plastic lids, caps and package handles
♻️Plastic buckets and pails
 
So, the next time you’re dropping off reusable building materials, you can recycle these items while you’re here, too. One stop, more materials kept in circulation and out of the landfill.
 
Want to learn more about Eugene’s first RecycleOn Center and how the program works? Read more from RecycleOn. 

Stay tuned for new RecycleOn Centers opening in Lane County, including a site in Florence, which is coming soon!
 
Need a little more enticement to visit? BRING is having a 50% off Labor Day Storewide Sale on Sept. 6, where you can save big on reuse materials.

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Household Hazardous Waste roundup events return to Florence
 
For folks in and around Florence, save a trip to Eugene and drop off your household hazardous waste materials closer to home!
 
Many common household products contain hazardous ingredients. Anything with a caution label such as Danger, Warning or Caustic can become a pollutant to groundwater and streams. Avoiding these products saves money and protects people, wildlife and our environment.
 
Alternatively, if you are coming to Eugene soon, you can easily schedule a Thursday or Saturday drop-off appointment at Glenwood Transfer Station (3100 E. 17th Ave., Eugene) at any time of the year at lanecountyor.gov/hazwaste.
 
Florence Household Hazardous Waste Collection Event
Friday, Oct. 2
Noon to 5 p.m.
Florence Transfer Station (2820 Rhododendron Dr., Florence)

Florence Household Hazardous Waste Collection Event
Saturday, Oct. 3
8 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Florence Transfer Station (2820 Rhododendron Dr., Florence)
 
Learn more on the Waste Wise Lane County Facebook events page.