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The National Association of REALTORS® asked for state and local REALTOR® associations to join in its efforts to fight against food insecurity across the country.
NAR has participated in the Food Recovery Network program since 2019 and has made association events Food Recovery Verified, which means groups recover surplus food from various events and donate it to hunger-fighting nonprofits.
NAR is asking the 1,200 or so state and local REALTOR® associations to join the efforts by making their own events Food Recovery Verified as the association commits to multiplying food insecurity efforts nationwide. The call came during the recent AEI conference, March 11–14, a professional development event for local and state REALTOR® association and MLS staff members.
“Food security, just like shelter, is not a luxury—it's a basic right of life,” says NAR CEO Bob Goldberg. “With the help and support of the Food Recovery Network along the way, NAR has donated 5,000 pounds of food from our events to nonprofits nationwide since 2019. We continue to look for new, innovative ways to advance this partnership and the impact it leaves on our world, and we hope all of our REALTOR® and trade partners will explore similar opportunities to fight hunger in their respective communities.”
Last year, NAR released a report that highlighted the ties between affordable housing and food insecurity. Eight million U.S. households lacked enough food in an analysis of a 13-day period in the summer of 2021. One in five renter households and nearly one in 20 homeowner households received food stamps. About 40% of homeowner households and 67% of renter households struggled to pay for household expenses like food, mortgage, student and car loans, medical bills, and utilities.
Food Recovery Network will help organizations set up their own food recovery plan. Learn more.