New Elk Grove social media effort feeds the hungry

A Northern California city has launched a social media venture that connects residents in need with excess food that would otherwise go to waste.

The Sacramento Bee reports the new Elk Grove Community Exchange allows food providers to reach out to charities, hungry families and individuals who have signed up to receive alerts.

So far the online exchange has registered about 1,000 people to the site. Officials say the effort has already collected nearly five tons of produce that otherwise would be headed to local landfills.

On Friday, a Future Farmers of America club posted an alert that it had 20 dozen eggs available for a local charity.

The website is sponsored by the Elk Grove Food Bank and was created in partnership with Sonoma County-based CropMobster.

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Information from: The Sacramento Bee, http://www.sacbee.com