Brightly, a food waste and climate company, received the first Verra-issued carbon credits under the VM0046 methodology for reducing food loss and waste. The credits, totaling 721,649 Verified Carbon Units, cover rescued food from March 2020 to December 2023. Participating food banks and rescue organizations recovered 15.3 billion pounds of food, with 3.1 billion pounds meeting the methodology's baseline and project criteria. The credits recognize avoided methane emissions from keeping edible food out of landfills. Most of the revenue from credit sales goes back to the food rescue organizations to fund trucks, refrigeration, and staff. The project was validated by SCS Global Services and received an A rating from BeZero Carbon for credit quality. Brightly works with 198 Feeding America food banks and 28 independent nonprofits across all 50 states. The approach creates a new funding stream for hunger relief while addressing the roughly 8-10% of global emissions linked to food loss and waste.
