The mission of Tampa Bay nonprofit 360 Eats is to create a food system that results in less food waste and hunger. Founder/CEO Cameron Macleish and his mother Ellen have worked to figure out how to turn unwanted foods into gourmet meals. Along with volunteers, the duo has rescued 17,500 pounds of food from being wasted, distributed about 6,800 meals to the community, created thousands of pounds of compost from scraps, and donated thousands of pounds of groceries to local shelters.

The team even served the re-imagined dishes to folks at Green Bench Brewing Co. in January. “Our duty is to provide one of the most important yet basic human rights to ordinary people through the provision of nutritious food within an equitable food system,” they wrote on the 360 Eats website.

Unfortunately, the nonprofit ran into an issue that’s hindered services for a bit and forced 360 to contract at a time when it should be expanding to feed more people. In a recent email, Cameron told Creative Loafing Tampa Bay that 360’s Food Rescue and Meal Delivery van was totaled in a February accident where they weren’t at-fault.

“This has left us without a reliable vehicle with the capacity to haul the hundreds of pounds of rescued food and meals we move on a weekly basis,” Cameron said. “It seriously stunted our ability to help the community.”

Donations are being collected through a “Keep 360 Eats On The Road" GoFundMe page. As of now, 360 has raised $820 of its $35,000 goal. There’s no specific van in mind but 360 will convert it into one that features a small window to distribute meals. “Our mobility is essential for us to continue to rescue food and feed the food insecure in our community and without it, we simply cannot continue,” 360 added.

A deadline isn’t listed but if anyone is interested in donating offline, they can mail it to 360 Eats, Inc., located at 3100 Teal Terrace in Safety Harbor FL, 34695.

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