A local food rescue nonprofit is distributing millions of free avocados this week

Sharing Excess — a local food rescue nonprofit — is giving away millions of free avocados to the public from Wednesday to Friday this week, due to a large surplus. 

The event, “Avogeddon,” is taking place in FDR Park in South Philadelphia at the corner of S. 20th Street and Pattison Avenue. Distributions will start from 12 p.m. every day until 6 p.m., or until supplies run out. According to the organization, at least five semi-trucks worth of avocados will be distributed to anybody that comes by.

“This is all trust-based,” founder of Sharing Excess Evan Ehlers told The Philadelphia Inquirer. “Our volunteers will ask, ‘How many do you need?’ If someone says, ‘I’m going to feed my entire block,’ we’re going to believe them.”

According to a press release, the sudden excess of avocados can be attributed to a surplus in South America. Avocado prices and supplies have been volatile this year, with shortages due to trade restrictions and climate change earlier in the year. 

“[T]here are literally millions of perfectly edible avocados at risk of going to waste, and we can’t let that happen,” said Sharing Excess in a Facebook post. The group hopes this event will prevent food waste and get the surplus to the people who need them, according to the press release. 

“We realized that we needed to do something bigger to be able to handle this massive surplus in a timely manner where the avocados are still good and able to be eaten,” said Ehlers to WHYY. 

In collaboration with the Tuttleman Foundation and Beast Philanthropy, the group will distribute two more trucks of avocados to local food banks, such as the Share Food Program and Philabundance, according to the Inquirer.

Since 2018, Sharing Excess has been working to rescue and redistribute potential food waste to communities facing food insecurity. They often do free food distributions across Philadelphia and have delivered more than 12 million meals to individuals and families in Pennsylvania, according to the organization in a press release.

“With rising food prices and cost of living, there couldn’t be a better time to do this,” Sharing Excess said in the release.