Divert, Inc. and PG&E Announce First-of-its-Kind Interconnection in California to Address the Wasted Food Crisis

WEST CONCORD, Mass. & OAKLAND, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov 21, 2024--

Divert, Inc., an impact technology company on a mission to Protect the Value of Food™, and Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) today announced a first-of-its-kind interconnection in the state of California to address the wasted food crisis. Divert’s facility in Turlock, California is now processing unsold food products into carbon-negative renewable energy, which is being injected into PG&E’s natural gas transmission line.

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“This is a remarkable clean energy milestone that reflects the hard work, dedication, and world-class talent of every individual who has contributed to bringing this project to life,” said Ryan Begin, CEO and Co-founder, Divert. “Together with PG&E, we are providing carbon-negative renewable energy to Californians, bringing the state one step closer to achieving its climate and clean energy goals. The Turlock facility represents a significant step forward in addressing the dual environmental and social crises of wasted food, and underscores Divert’s leadership in scaling sustainable infrastructure solutions for the energy sector.”

The Turlock Integrated Diversion & Energy Facility will be able to process 100,000 tons of unsold food products a year. Nearly 225,000 MMBtu of Renewable Natural Gas (RNG) will be delivered into PG&E's system. Divert’s facility will also mitigate approximately 23,000 metric tons of CO2 emissions annually, equivalent to removing approximately 5,000 gas-powered cars from the road.

More than 63 million tons of food are wasted in the U.S. each year, a crisis that contributes significantly to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions—nearly 14%. California alone discards six million tons of food annually. The Turlock facility delivers on Divert’s commitment to further address the wasted food crisis in California, providing businesses with data analytics and insights to waste less and donate more food. Leveraging its proprietary anaerobic digestion solution, Divert is then taking unsold food that would otherwise be emitting harmful methane in a landfill and transforming it into a beneficial and carbon-negative byproduct. In doing so, Divert is bringing California closer to reaching its net-zero carbon pollution goals.

“Today marks another exciting first for PG&E and our customers and highlights our commitment to supporting the advancement of diverse renewable natural gas resources produced locally in California,” said Austin Hastings, Vice President, PG&E Gas Engineering. “By accepting renewable natural gas made from unsold food products into our pipeline system, we’re contributing to a more sustainable California and advancing toward our goal of a net-zero energy system by 2040. It’s a win for our customers, our state, and our climate goals.”

Divert’s facility in Turlock is slated to be fully operational in Q4 2024. To request an invitation to the company’s grand opening event on December 4, please click here.

About Divert, Inc.
Divert, Inc. is an impact technology company on a mission to Protect the Value of Food™. Founded in 2007, the company creates advanced technologies and sustainable infrastructure to address wasted food, driving social and environmental impact. Divert provides an end-to-end solution that leverages data to prevent waste, facilitates edible food recovery to serve communities in need, and converts unsold food products into renewable energy. Through this integrated approach to reducing wasted food - Prevent, Provide, Power™ - the company works with over 7,200 customer locations across the U.S. to reduce wasted food and positively impact people and the environment. Its customer base spans across industries and includes five Fortune 100 companies. For more information on Divert, Inc., please visit www.divertinc.com and follow the company on LinkedIn, X, Threads, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube.

About PG&E
Pacific Gas and Electric Company, a subsidiary of PG&E Corporation (NYSE:PCG), is a combined natural gas and electric utility serving more than 16 million people across 70,000 square miles in Northern and Central California. For more information, visit pge.com and pge.com/news.

Divert’s facility in Turlock, California is now processing unsold food products into carbon-negative renewable energy, which is being injected into PG&E’s natural gas transmission line. (Photo: Business Wire)

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — The Illinois Supreme Court on Thursday overturned actor Jussie Smollett’s conviction on charges that he staged a racist and homophobic attack against himself in downtown Chicago in 2019 and lied to police.

The state's highest court ruled that a special prosecutor should not have been allowed to intervene after the Cook County state’s attorney initially dropped charges against Smollett in exchange for forfeiting his $10,000 bond and conducting community service. The ruling and the appeal did not address Smollett's continued claim of innocence.

Smollett, who is Black and gay, claimed two men assaulted him, spouted racial and homophobic slurs and tossed a noose around his neck, leading to a massive search for suspects by Chicago police detectives and kicking up an international uproar. Smollett was on the television drama “Empire,” which filmed in Chicago, and prosecutors alleged he staged the attack because he was unhappy with the studio’s response to hate mail he received.

“We are aware that this case has generated significant public interest and that many people were dissatisfied with the resolution of the original case and believed it to be unjust,” Justice Elizabeth Rochford wrote in the 5-0 decision. “Nevertheless, what would be more unjust than the resolution of any one criminal case would be a holding from this court that the state was not bound to honor agreements upon which people have detrimentally relied.”

Smollett’s attorneys have argued that the case was over when the Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx's office dropped an initial 16 counts of disorderly conduct. A grand jury restored charges after a special prosecutor took the case. A jury convicted Smollett of five counts of disorderly conduct in 2021.

Emailed messages seeking comment were sent Thursday to Foxx's office and to Smollett’s attorney, who have argued that Smollett has been victimized by a racist and politicized justice system.

Testimony at his trial indicated Smollett paid $3,500 to two men whom he knew from “Empire” to carry out the attack. Prosecutors said he told them what slurs to shout, and to yell that Smollett was in “MAGA country,” an apparent reference to the Donald Trump’s presidential campaign slogan.

Smollett testified that “there was no hoax” and that he was the victim of a hate crime in his downtown Chicago neighborhood.

He was sentenced to 150 days in jail — six of which he served before he was freed pending appeal — 30 months of probation and ordered to pay about $130,000 in restitution.

A state appellate court ruling upheld Smollett’s the conviction, declaring that no one promised Smollett he wouldn’t face a fresh prosecution after accepting the original deal.

Illinois Supreme Court Chief Justice Mary Jane Theis and Justice Joy Cunningham took no part in Thursday’s decision.

Associated Press reporter Sophia Tareen in Chicago contributed to this report.

FILE - Jussie Smollett arrives at the BET Awards, June 26, 2022, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP, File)