SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — The WM Phoenix Open prides itself on being a zero-waste event. It’s living up to its nickname of the "Greenest Show on Grass" by reusing the food leftover from the tournament. And there is a lot of great stuff to choose from.
Step one of the recipe for sustainability starts with cooking all of the great eats the hundreds of thousands of golf fans will enjoy.
“We've been prepping since October, sauces and stocks which can be premade and frozen,” said Chief Culinary Officer for M Culinary Concepts Michael DeMaria.
DeMaria said he has a team of about 1,000 that works through the year planning, preparing and then storing the food in their massive, three-story freezer.
In the weeks ahead of Scottdale’s iconic golf tournament, they have 50-60 chefs whipping up the menu, which this year includes mac and cheese from around the world, and then multiplying it by the thousands.
“We do about 37,000 duck tacos, can you believe that?” asked DeMaria, “47,000 salmon filets!”
During the week of The People’s Open, all the prepared food is taken in trucks to TPC Scottsdale. 250 culinarians work on-site, each day, cooking up the food to be dished out to fans.
Step two of this recipe is saving the food and getting it on the road. That’s where local non-profit Waste Not AZ comes in. They’ve been part of the Valley community since 1987.
“It’s really a no-brainer to pick up food that's in excess. There's tons of it and to feed the community with it,” said Hillary Bryant, the Executive Director at Waste Not.
Once the leftover food is saved at the golf course and returned to M Culinary Concepts in north Phoenix, it’s then Waste Not’s role to transport that food. They must do this work immediately to make sure it stays fresh. Then they disperse it to some of the one hundred organizations they partner with.
“We park our truck here, M Culinary will help us load up, and we're right on the road delivering,” said Bryant.
Step three is where organizations like St. Vincent DePaul come in and put the food to good use.
“We're the lucky ones that get to give that food out to the community and turned into fresh meals,” said Danielle McMahon the Associate Chief Operations Officer at St. Vincent DePaul.
St. Vincent feeds about 7,000 people a day. Their chefs can get creative with what is brought to them, and you never know who it is helping.
“Food insecurity looks like you it looks like me it really doesn't have a face,” said McMahon.
So while you enjoy everything the WM Phoenix Open offers, you’re making a bigger difference than just your cheers along the course.
“I don’t know that everyone realizes that when they walk into the Open that it is one of the biggest charity events that the state has to offer,” said McMahon.
Saturday’s #GreenOut day at the tournament also raises money for sustainability initiatives and nonprofits. The Thunderbirds, the tournament host, donate money to organizations with a sustainability focus for each person who wears green. This includes every fan, volunteer, service animal and the players and caddies.
Waste Not said they benefit from the generosity of Saturday’s #GreenOut funds and the 50-50 raffle this year. You can find more information about this Arizona organization on their website.
St. Vincent DePaul shares they are always in need of volunteers, every day of the year. If you would like to help and support the work they do, you can find all the information you need on their website.
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