City Harvest is New York City's largest food rescue organization. The organization collects food that would otherwise go to waste from restaurants, bakeries and cafes.
History
City Harvest was founded in 1982, and is the world's first food rescue organization. The organization collects excess food from restaurants, grocers, bakeries, Greenmarkets, corporate cafeterias, manufacturers, and farms. The food is then delivered without charge to community food programs throughout New York City. Food delivered by City Harvest is received by about 1 million residents. Its founders included Helen verDuin Palit and Harley Brooke-Hitching and Peter Schmidt. The operation utilizes approximately 160 employees and 20,000 volunteers annually. Fresh fruits and vegetables comprised more than half of the rescued food. In 2005, City Harvest began holding two, free farmers’ market-style distributions in low-income communities each month. The operation now includes nine Mobile Markets – two per borough – each month, distributing approximately three million pounds of fresh produce a year. In the fiscal year of 2013, these markets delivered roughly one million pounds of produce to 50,000 residents. In addition, these markets sometimes include on-site cooking demonstrations. In December 2011, City Harvest opened its 45,400 square foot Food Rescue Facility in Long Island City, Queens. The facility includes a large cooler and freezer to safely hold perishable food on a short-term basis and a large dry storage area to sort non-perishable goods.
Since 2006, the Healthy Neighborhoods initiative has expanded access to healthy produce and has offered nutrition education to residents. These programs target high-need communities throughout the five boroughs.
Emergency food programs
City Harvest delivers over 10 million pounds of food each year to emergency food programs located within designated Healthy Neighborhoods. Soup kitchens and food pantries are then able to offer participants a variety of healthy food. Through the Agency Capacity Expansion program, City Harvest offers grants for one-time projects to selected emergency food programs to upgrade facilities and services. In addition, City Harvest University's courses teach agencies core skill sets.
Educational outreach
City Harvest provides free nutrition education classes for adults, families, teenagers, and senior citizens at participating community organizations, which teach the skills needed to prepare healthy meals. The staff and volunteers of City Harvest demonstrate healthy cooking recipes and techniques at senior centers, supermarkets, corner stores, health clinics, and other community hubs. Developed by Share Our Strength, Cooking Matters workshops educate all age groups on how to develop and maintain a healthy diet. City Harvest teaches customers how to find affordable, healthy foods in their communities. City Harvest also uses a nutrition education curriculum to work with low-income seniors.
Food accessibility
City Harvest partners with community residents, organizations, after-school programs, and businesses to promote nutritious eating options. City Harvest helps neighborhood retailers increase the quantity, quality and variety of produce. In addition, City Harvest hosts healthy cooking demonstrations and budget shopping workshops. The efforts seek to improve communication between shop owners and clientele. To build public support for healthy food outlets and sustain change over time, City Harvest convenes Community Action Networks in each of its Healthy Neighborhoods. These networks engage residents and retailers who are committed to improving access to healthy food.
Advocacy
City Harvest advocates at the city, state and federal level for programs, policies and actions to change the conditions that result in food insecurity and hunger. City Harvest also provides low-income New Yorkers with access to federal nutrition programs and regional food supplies.
Events
To help raise funds, City Harvest hosts annual events such as the City Harvest Gala,Summer in the City, and BID. Events often include restaurant tastings, introductions to top chefs, and auction prizes.
Awards and recognition
In 1989 City Harvest founder Helen verDuin Palit received a presidential citation for a private sector initiative from President George Bush, as part of his 1,000 Points of Light program. In 2008, Charity Navigator awarded City Harvest with 4 stars in their charity ranking system. The Robin Hood Foundation awarded a $400,000 grant to City Harvest in 2009 based on the efficiency of City Harvest’s unique food rescue model. The following year Executive Director Jilly Stephens was honored at the Annual Spirit of ABNY awards as a select New Yorker who has provided a distinguished level of service to New York City. In The New York Times Company’s annual Nonprofit Excellence Awards, City Harvest was awarded the Silver Prize for Excellent Management in 2011.
