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Billie Eilish, her mom donate plant-based meals to Pittsburgh nonprofit | TribLIVE.com
Food & Drink

Billie Eilish, her mom donate plant-based meals to Pittsburgh nonprofit

JoAnne Klimovich Harrop
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Courtesy of 412 Food Rescue
Leah Lizarondo (left), 412 Food Rescue CEO, poses for a photo inside the Renaissance Pittsburgh Hotel,Downtown with singer Billie Eilish’s mom, Maggie Baird (right) on Feb. 8. The singer and her mother donated food to 412 Food Rescue.
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Courtesy of 412 Food Rescue
Leah Lizarondo (left), 412 Food Rescue CEO, takes a photo in front of the Renaissance Pittsburgh Hotel, Downtown with singer Billie Eilish’s mom, Maggie Baird (right) on Feb. 8. The singer and her mother donated food to 412 Food Rescue.

Billie Eilish’ s “Happier Than Ever” world tour isn’t just about feeding each city with good music.

It’s about nourishing the people there. too.

Before Eilish’s Tuesday performance at PPG Paints Arena, the singer supplied food to 412 Food Rescue, a Pittsburgh-based organization that prevents food from going to waste and delivers it to people who need it.

Eilish, and her mother, Maggie Baird, donated surplus vegan meals left over from the crew’s meals.

Baird founded Support + Feed in 2020, described as “a nonprofit which aims to combat food insecurity and climate change by advocating for a global shift to an equitable, plant-based food system.”

The mother and daughter eat plant-based and their mission is for everyone to have access to healthy, vegetable-forward meals.

“We are so grateful for the work that Maggie and Billie are doing to impact not only food insecurity but also climate change,” 412 Food Rescue CEO Leah Lizarondo said via email. “Preventing food waste and eating more plant-based meals are two things we all can do every day. The Food Rescue Hero app makes it easy for people to take this action every day, everywhere.”

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Courtesy of 412 Food Rescue
Leah Lizarondo (left), 412 Food Rescue CEO, leaves the Renaissance Pittsburgh Hotel, Downtown with food donated from singer Billie Eilish and her mom, Maggie Baird (right) on Feb. 8.

The food came from extra at a rehearsal, provided by local vegan restaurant Onion Maiden of Allentown. The 412 Food Rescue team picked up the meals from the crew’s hotel — the Renaissance Pittsburgh — and delivered them to Outreached Arms, an organization that serves food-insecure people in downtown Pittsburgh.

To date, 412 Food Rescue said it has has redistributed nearly 22 million pounds of food in the Pittsburgh area that otherwise would have been sent to landfills and contributed to harmful greenhouse gas emissions.

The food is found through a Food Rescue Hero app and 16,000 volunteers help it feed those in need.

Baird said in a statement that she was excited to learn about 412 Food Rescue. Support + Feed began in Los Angeles and has locations in Philadelphia, Washington and New York City.

It’s part of Eilish’s tour in each city.

“We’re thrilled to provide plant-based food from local community restaurants to 412 Food Rescue and the people they serve, and fight the climate crisis together,” Baird said in a statement.

According to 412 Food Rescue, in the U.S. as much as 40 percent of food produced is wasted. One in eight people go hungry.

JoAnne Klimovich Harrop is a TribLive reporter covering the region’s diverse culinary scene and unique homes. She writes features about interesting people and a weekly column about things to do in Pittsburgh. The Edward R. Murrow award-winning journalist began her career as a sports reporter. She has been with the Trib for 26 years and is the author of “A Daughter’s Promise.” She can be reached at jharrop@triblive.com.

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