The number of people suffering from food insecurity is growing, but a new report shows close to 40 percent of all the food in America is not eaten.

There are 44 million people across the United States who are food insecure, and 13 million of those are children.

Most of them don't know where their next meal will come from or when, and if you think 'not in my community,' think again.

"She had seen that she had gotten off the bus, and she went looking for, and the child was too weak from hunger to go up the steps and take the class. This kid had not eaten since Thursday, it was Monday. I kind of just said, well, that's just dumb. I can do something about that," chef Suzy Deyoung said.

That's when Deyoung, a chef for 40 years, decided to create La Soupe, a non-profit that relies on rescued food.

"It has been over ordered, overproduced, overgrown, but perfectly good for human consumption," Deyoung said.

Professional chefs from the Cincinnati area donate their time to create whatever they can with whatever food is donated from local grocery stores, food manufacturers and restaurants.

"25,000 pounds of food a week, on average, and that's produce, protein, dry goods, dairy," La Soupe Shipping and Receiving Manager Jarred Beckman said.

Last year, La Soupe rescued 1.3 million pounds of food from hitting the landfill and making 1.1 million meals.

La Soupe supplies local food banks, like the one at Northern Kentucky University.

They also help shelters, schools, the elderly and deliver 7,000 medically tailored meals annually.

Now, Deyoung is creating a game plan to help other cities across the country do the same.

"If you can find something that you're really good at and then donate that, what you get back is millions of times better than the financial reward," Deyoung said.

La Soupe also takes the damaged food that cannot be used and donates it to local pig and chicken farmers.

They also found a way to put freezer burned meat to use. They donate it to a local wild animal sanctuary, just a few more ways to divert food from landfills.

If you would like to find out more about the program and how to start one in your community, go to lasoupe.org.