A major Strip casino operator is partnering with a local nonprofit to combat food insecurity in Southern Nevada.
Caesars Entertainment has launched a new partnership with The Just One Project to expand food rescue operations tied to large-scale meetings and conventions in Las Vegas by donating surplus prepared meals to food-insecure families across the valley.
The effort formally kicked off with a donation event on May 13 at Caesars Forum, where surplus food from a recent conference was collected and redistributed through The Just One Project’s Food Rescue Alliance program. Nearly 2,000 pounds of food were recovered for the one-day event, which made up roughly 1,755 meals.
Caesars officials said the initiative builds on years of internal efforts to reduce food waste in banquet and convention operations, but represents a more structured and scalable approach.
“We’ve tried to tackle what we do with food waste and how we support the community,” said Chris Skelding, vice president of meetings operations for Caesars Entertainment. He said the scale of conventions in Las Vegas creates both a challenge and an opportunity, noting that “you see food just getting thrown away” in typical banquet operations.
Skelding said the goal is to move from ad hoc donations to a system that can be replicated across multiple properties, including Caesars Palace, Paris Las Vegas, Horseshoe, and others, with the possibility of expanding beyond Las Vegas in the future. He also said the company is exploring how to involve clients earlier in the process so they can opt in to food donation as part of their event planning.
Chef Eric Vaughn, executive director of culinary operations for Las Vegas banquets at Caesars Entertainment, said banquet food production differs from restaurant service because chefs must prepare based on contracted attendance estimates, which often results in surplus.
“We’re super passionate about what we’re creating here,” Vaughn said. “And, of course, to see our hard work going to clients is awesome, but it’s just as rewarding to see it go to somebody in need.”
He said the partnership formalizes and expands practices that had previously been difficult to execute consistently. About eight months ago, he said, Caesars began pilot efforts with The Just One Project that helped demonstrate the feasibility of large-scale recovery operations.
“It feels so good to think about people who were not going to have a meal tonight, have one, and especially, one we put so much love in. Everybody here is on board with (this initiative) to the highest degree,” Vaughn said, adding that support extends beyond kitchen staff to front-of-house teams and managers.
For The Just One Project, the partnership represents both a logistical expansion and a major step toward its broader Food Rescue Alliance goals, which focus on building a coordinated network of Strip properties and hospitality partners.
“This has been a journey of over a year,” said Brooke Neubauer, CEO and founder of The Just One Project. She said onboarding Caesars is a major milestone because of the scale of food available through convention operations and the quality of meals being recovered.
Neubauer said Caesars is contributing roughly a $50,000 investment to support the logistics of recovery and transportation, in addition to donating surplus food that has already been prepared for events.
She described the organization’s approach as a “white glove” service, emphasizing food safety, coordination with kitchen teams and same-day redistribution.
The nonprofit typically deploys a small recovery crew on-site to pack and transport food, with additional volunteers at its headquarters handling sorting and distribution. Neubauer said roughly six team members were present for the Caesars Forum event, with additional volunteers waiting to help unload and repackage meals for immediate distribution.
“We have families waiting for us at HQ,” she said. “This food will be in refrigerators within three hours.”
Neubauer said success for the program will ultimately be measured by expansion.
“Success is other people joining us,” she said, adding that the long-term goal is to see similar programs adopted across more hospitality properties in Las Vegas.
The initiative also includes employee engagement through Caesars’ HERO volunteer network, which allows staff to participate in donation collection, meal packing and other community-based efforts.
Both Caesars and The Just One Project said the partnership is designed not only to reduce waste but also to strengthen coordination between hospitality operations and existing nonprofit food distribution systems already serving the region’s most vulnerable residents.
Contact David Danzis at ddanzis@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0378. Follow @AC2Vegas_Danzis on X.
