Rethink Food Launches “Rethink Services” Program to Support Businesses Owned by Women, People of Color, and Ethnic Minorities through Government Contracting
New York, NY - June 13th, 2024 - Rethink Food, a leading nonprofit with the mission to create a more sustainable and equitable food system, today announced the launch of Rethink Services. The nonprofit’s latest model brings together a network of like-minded, small local businesses committed to creating nutritious, dignified meals for communities at government-funded sites across New York City, all while utilizing food excess and supporting community development.
“We firmly believe in the effectiveness of engaging local restaurants and food businesses and utilizing their infrastructure to deliver high-quality meals to communities in need while concurrently continuing to support the small business community,” says Matt Jozwiak, Rethink Food Founder and CEO. “We are honored to work with the local government, and we are optimistic that we will continue scaling this impact across all five boroughs of New York City and beyond.”
Rethink Services is collaborating with over a dozen small local restaurants and food businesses—all owned by women, people of color, and ethnic minorities—government agencies and nonprofit providers. The program has already delivered 14 million meals to 32 city shelters serving asylum seekers and channeled more than 71 million dollars to small local restaurants and food businesses—demonstrating that we can effectively engage local businesses while utilizing their infrastructure to provide nutritious, culturally relevant community meals. This work and impact are made possible by the leadership of Mayor Eric Adams and his administration’s focus on equitable food procurement.
Rethink Services builds upon Rethink Food’s extensive experience in hospitality and culinary approach to emergency response that was born out of an unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic with the creation of Rethink Certified—its meal restaurant program that has delivered 13+ million meals and directed $70+ million to small local businesses since April 2020. These businesses demonstrated a high capacity for service, and the program now extends beyond the immediate crisis to respond to the ongoing demand for meals while fostering community resilience and economic growth. In 2023, Rethink Food released a report in collaboration with McKinsey & Co. that examined the program's social, environmental, and economic benefits. It showed that Rethink’s decentralized model could generate 50% more jobs in our local communities, 25% more tax revenue, and 33% more local dollars spent—all while bringing thoughtfulness, compassion, and hospitality to their food service.
As Rethink Food begins this new journey, the nonprofit is refining its structure to enhance its focus and more effectively meet distinct community needs while upholding the integrity and impact of the overarching mission:
Rethink Services, led by Chief Program Officer Jordan Correa, will focus on developing more scalable solutions to create a more equitable and sustainable food system through food contracting—addressing the complex food needs across the city and beyond and encouraging more businesses to get involved in the procurement process to create culturally celebrated meals for the food-insecure communities.
Rethink Food will grow the Rethink Certified grant program, led by Jordan Correa, and the Sustainable Community Kitchen, led by Culinary Director Ken Baker, through philanthropic donations to deliver nutritious, sustainable meals across communities.
With these changes, Rethink Food will continue to create a better food future, working with local government agencies, nonprofits, and partners across the food system to grow models that benefit our neighbors.
For media inquiries, please contact:
Jack Gillespie
Paradox Public Relations
+1-310-804-6758
jack@paradoxpr.com
About Rethink Food:
Rethink Food is an NYC-based nonprofit organization with the mission of creating a more sustainable and equitable food system. In partnership with a network of local restaurants, community-based organizations, and food donors across the food system, Rethink Food has provided over 26 million meals to local communities facing food insecurity, directed over $111 million to small local restaurants and businesses, and repurposed over 2.5 million pounds of excess food across its programs since its founding in 2017.
To learn more, visit rethinkfood.org and rethinkservices.org and follow @rethinkfood on Instagram, X (formerly Twitter), TikTok, Facebook, Linkedin, and Threads.