Waste Not, a native non-profit, just received a new E-transit refrigerated van and Level 2 charging station thanks to Whole Foods Market’s Nourishing Our Neighborhoods initiative, which encourages the redistributing of fresh food to those in need. On December 11, 2025, Whole Foods Market team members and Waste No employees celebrated by filling the van to the brim with donated goods and transporting community members who were experiencing food insecurity to the Tempe store.
Mara Pernick, executive director of Waste No,” We are honored to be a recipient of Whole Foods Market’s Nourishing Our Neighborhood program.” This chilled van is more than just a vehicle; it is also a lifeline. It will allow our drivers to properly transport fresh, healthy food across the Valley, making sure it is delivered to families, veterans, and people who might otherwise not be able to get it. We can maximize the impact of every donation by keeping food raw from pickup to delivery, helping to maintain a healthier, more resilient community.
” We’re so excited to strengthen our relationship with Waste Not and continue to help the Phoenix community with their food rescue efforts,” said Stacy McLean, store team leader for Whole Foods Market Tempe. This van will not only help bring more rescued food to neighbors in need, but it will also help reduce food waste and do a lot of good by having a long-term impact on the community.
In September 2020, Whole Foods Market launched Nourishing Our Neighborhoods and donated 90 frozen vans to food-rescue partners to transport food to communities across the United States and Canada. These food-rescue partners take part in the company’s Grocery Rescue Program by returning food from their stores each week to give raw, high-quality food to neighbors in need.
More than$ 9.5 billion worth of food is discarded annually in Arizona, which is the top state for food waste. One in seven Arizonans are struggling with hunger and unsure of where their next meal will come from at the same time. Waste No is working to alter that. Waste No has spent more than 35 years attempting to get rid of food waste and hunger in Arizona by rescuing income food and delivering it immediately to organizations that provide food for the people in need. Waste No helped feed Arizonans who were experiencing food insecurity by diverting 2.7 million pounds of nutritious food from landfills in 2024 only.
Learn more about Waste Not’s Nourishing Our Neighborhoods program at Whole Foods Market, HERE, and how it is supporting the neighborhood.
