Congressman Dan Goldman Requests Funding for Financial District’s Rethink Food to Expand Food Distribution Fleet
Funds to be Used to Acquire Two Cold Storage Food Distribution Vehicles to Expand Access to Fresh Food Throughout NY-10
Read the Letter Here
New York, NY – Congressman Dan Goldman (NY-10) requested $175,000 in the Fiscal Year 2024 budget forRethink Food to expand their mobile food pantry fleet with two additional vehicles to safely preserve and distribute fresh foods to the organization’s network of 12 community-based organizations serving food-insecure New Yorkers. With an expanded network of vehicles, Rethink Food will be able to more efficiently transport donated food to food insecure communities.
“I am incredibly proud of the work that Rethink Food has done in throughout the city and especially in Lower Manhattan and Brooklyn to ensure that all New Yorkers have access to quality food,” Congressman Dan Goldman said. “Rethink serves communities that often do not have access to more traditional food pantry items through their delivery of fresh, healthy prepared meals. Expanding their fleet would mean that Rethink will be able to serve even more New Yorkers facing food insecurity that do not have the ability to cook in their homes. I’m looking forward to supporting Rethink in their efforts to eliminate food insecurity across New York.”
Kathleen DiPerna, Director of Government Relations for Rethink Food said, “Rethink Food is excited to be selected as one of the Community Project Funding projects put forth by Congressman Goldman to the House Appropriations Committee to fund projects in District 10 that expand the work of community-based organizations in the district. If selected, Rethink Food will utilize funding to purchase 2 refrigerated sprinter vans to assist its operations in safely recovering excess food from the supply chain and create it into nutritious meals, at no cost, for communities in need. We are thankful for Congressman Goldman's support of our work to sustainably and equitably alleviate food insecurity.”
Unlike traditional food pantries that primarily serve groceries and ingredients, Rethink Food focuses on delivering prepared meals in order to serve clients that do not have the ability to cook in their homes. Their partnership with other community organizations allows New Yorkers to have high-quality meals, which may be their only source of sustenance that day.
Pre-pandemic, Rethink solely operated a commissary kitchen and partnered with food donors to deliver approximately 1,000 meals per week to 11 community-based organizations in New York City.
Today, the commissary kitchen has expanded to serve as a hub for Rethink’s sustainability work, repurposing donated excess food and providing Environmental Social Governance (ESG) services. The commissary kitchen, located in downtown Manhattan, currently produces approximately 8,000 meals per week, utilizing and repurposing donated and excess food items from restaurants, corporate kitchens, farms, hospitality institutions, food suppliers, and grocery stores.
The commissary also repurposes donated and excess food items into standalone food “preservation” products that can be used by a network of CBO partners. This includes jams, soups, stocks, and sauces that are chef-quality, delicious, and nutrient-dense. CBO partners can order these products online for free through a portal set up by Rethink to supplement soup kitchen food prep or stock for individuals to take from community fridges.
In 2022, the preservation team generated approximately 16,000 quarts of product for distribution to CBO partners for free. More than 18,000 no-cost items were ordered by CBO partners, worth a total estimated market value of $300,000, representing additional cost savings for CBO partners.
The Rethink commissary works to reduce food waste, drive economic impact through local hiring for kitchen and trucking operations, and help businesses meet their ESG and Corporate Social Responsibility targets.
In New York City, Rethink operates in neighborhoods of highest need in all five boroughs. The majority of programming takes place in vulnerable communities and those hardest hit by the pandemic, as defined and prioritized by the NYC Taskforce on Racial Inclusion & Equity (TRIE). These communities also report higher percentages of health and socioeconomic disparities.
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