Community Champions

Throughout the U.S., 38 million people are experiencing food insecurity. We continue to see the lasting impact of the pandemic on the health and economic well-being of our neighbors, especially among communities of color, who are disproportionately affected by food hardship.

In addition, inflation rates have risen by more than 8%—the highest in over 40 years. This has worsened food hardship and put additional strain on emergency feeding programs that face increasing demand for meals. 

We believe that a community-centered approach is critical to addressing inequity in our food system. We start with understanding the needs and cultural preferences of the community that our network of community-based organizations (CBOs) serve to ensure they have access to high-quality and dignified meals. We then partner with a restaurant in that neighborhood to provide meals to the matching CBO, using funding and support provided by Rethink Food.

By creating better connections across the food system, we facilitate lasting relationships between community leaders and local businesses, in addition to providing nutritious and dignified meals to our neighbors.

Rethink Food’s network of CBOs are the beating heart of our work. They act as community liaisons and have unique insights into the needs of their neighbors—an invaluable quality in our mission to serve people with integrity while they navigate such a difficult time. To highlight their work we interviewed four of our CBO partners–or as we sometimes call them, our Community Champions–who help ensure that 50,000 nutritious meals, made each week by our restaurant partners and our commissary kitchen, are served to our neighbors. Hearing their perspectives working in the field and understanding how they see firsthand the still-growing need in their communities has been an enriching experience, and now we want to share their initiatives and insights with you!

NeON Nutrition Kitchens

NeON Nutrition Kitchens are neighborhood food pantries that seek to assist individuals transitioning from the justice system back into society. These pantries provide critical resources for individuals who may be facing unemployment and social adjustments and also creates a sense of community in this often isolating experience. Since our robust partnership began in November 2020, NeON Nutrition Kitchens has distributed over 77,600 nutritious and culturally-celebrated meals made by Rethink Certified restaurant partners to their communities in Staten Island and Brooklyn.

To learn the why behind their great work, we spoke with Director of Community Resources Stephen Cacace and Carlos Melendez: 

Currently in New York City, 1.5 million people are experiencing food insecurity, including 1 in 4 children. When asked about food insecurity in her community, Union Pool Food Pantry volunteer Suzanne Cub said, “Our first day was June 24th of 2020, we had 7 people show up, and today (May 2022) we served 170 people so that need is not going away, it’s just growing  - which is terrifying and heartbreaking to me, but we’re doing the best we can.”

Union Pool

The Union Pool food pantry is an inspiring example of community action in response to a growing need. At the onset of the pandemic, employees and patrons of Union Pool felt it was critical to support their neighbors who were facing unprecedented challenges. Union Pool has always had a history of Mutual Aid, and in that spirit, a weekly pantry and meal distribution service were born. While originally established as an emergency response, the need has steadily grown - and now, their weekly operation is a stronghold for Williamsburg residents seeking food assistance. We are incredibly proud to partner with Union Pool, who since February 2022 has distributed over 6,000 delicious meals powered by Rethink Food’s restaurant partners to their neighbors in Brooklyn. 

Here’s what some of Union Pool’s weekly and committed volunteers had to say:

Hungry Monk

Our CBO partner Hungry Monk uses a holistic approach to meet the needs of its recipients - many of whom face challenges of homelessness. Not only does Hungry Monk serve over 3,000 families each week through their meal distributions, but they also provide crucial services like bed stabilization programs, emergency warming centers in the winter, and rehabilitation services. Hungry Monk has been a steadfast partner since early 2020, distributing over 150,000 nutritious and culturally celebrated meals cooked by our restaurant partners for our neighbors in Ridgewood, Queens, and Bushwick, Brooklyn.

Here it from Father Mike Lopez at Hungry Monk:

Collective Fare

Collaboration is at the heart of any long-term solution. At Rethink Food, we believe that our strong ecosystem of CBOs, in partnership with local restaurants, is an effective way to build lasting change within communities. That’s why we’re so proud to work with Latoya Meaders of Collective Fare, who also believes in a multi-faceted strategy for implementing change. Beyond a restaurant, Collective Fare provides catering services, price-scalable meals & markets, culinary education, and job training to empower individuals to reclaim their financial and food independence. Collective Fare has been a powerhouse Rethink Food partner that has prepared and distributed 260,000 meals to their neighbors in Brooklyn since April 2020.

Here’s what LaToya Meaders from Collective Fare had to say:

We’re proud to currently work with a network of 83 community-based organizations across New York City, San Francisco, Chicago, Nashville, Washington D.C., and Miami to serve our neighbors in need with nutritious, culturally-celebrated meals. Together, since January 2022, we have provided over 1,500,000 free meals to local communities—totaling over 8.3 million meals since 2020.

If you missed it, please read our summer report highlighting key updates in our work and our progress against our commitment to creating a more sustainable and equitable food system. And if you can, please consider donating to Rethink Food today. As food insecurity continues to affect the people around us, we need your help to consistently and sustainably provide meals to communities.