The Farmlink Project
Formation2020
TypeNon-profit
PurposeFood rescue, food excess, food insecurity
Region
United States
Founders
James Kanoff, Aidan Reilly, Ben Collier, Will Collier, Max Goldman
CEO
Ben Collier
Staff
20
Volunteers
650
Websitehttps://www.farmlinkproject.org/

The Farmlink Project is a United States-based non-profit organization that combats food waste by collecting excess produce from farms and other food donors across America and delivering it to organizations that serve food insecure communities.[1][2] Since its founding in 2020, the organization has rescued over 130 million pounds of food, distributed to over 400 communities, and grown to a network of over 600 volunteers nationwide.[3][1]

The Farmlink Project has raised over $15 million in fundraising efforts, and has partnered with organizations such as Chipotle, Kroger, and Uber Freight.[4][5][1][6]

History

The Farmlink Project was founded in Los Angeles in April 2020 by James Kanoff and Aidan Reilly, both juniors in college at the time.[7] Additional founding team members included Ben Collier, Will Collier, Owen Dubeck, Jordan Hartzell, Max Goldman, and Stella Delp.[8][9][10][11][12]

At the time, due to the recent onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the food banking system in America was experiencing extraordinary levels of demand while millions of pounds of fresh goods went to waste on farms due to factors such as supply chain disruptions and the closures of restaurants, hotels, and schools.[13][14][15] In reaction, Kanoff and Reilly—along with dozens of other college student volunteers—began cold calling farms around the state of California to inquire about their surplus produce and determine methods for food rescue and distribution.[3][8] The organization's first operation consisted of renting a U-Haul truck and driving out to Trafficanda Egg Ranches to rescue a surplus of 10,800 eggs, which was delivered to Westside Food Bank in Los Angeles.[16][7]

The Farmlink Project has since grown to a full-time team of over 20 employees and a network of over 600 volunteers nationwide.[1][17] The organization's current model consists of sourcing surplus from food donors, matching it to local nonprofit food distribution centers, and coordinating the transportation logistics to deliver the produce.[18] The Farmlink Project focuses specifically on locating and collecting food that would otherwise go to waste due to factors such as limited shelf life or not meeting industry standards for the typical market.[18] The organization works with a turnaround time of 1-2 business days and has the capacity to rescue high quantities of produce, which saves farmers from unnecessary dump fees or having to coordinate a donation themselves.[18]

Impact

Since its founding, The Farmlink Project has moved more than 130 million pounds of surplus food from donors to food banks and other food distribution centers.[19] The organization estimates that it has mitigated more than 350 million pounds of carbon dioxide-equivalent emissions by diverting produce from landfills.[4] It has coordinated food rescue operations with more than 120 farms and more than 300 communities in 48 states, including the Navajo Nation.[20][21][22]

Awards and Recognition

The Farmlink Project and its founders have gained widespread recognition for their efforts, receiving numerous awards and honors since 2020. Co-founders Kanoff and Reilly were awarded 2021 Congressional Medal of Honor Society Citizen Honors and included in the Forbes 30 Under 30 for Social Impact in 2022 list, while Kanoff, Reilly, and Ben Collier received a Jefferson Award for Public Service in November 2022.[23][24][25][26][27] Kanoff was also nominated for the 2021 Pritzker Emerging Environmental Genius Award.[28] The organization won the 2023 Goalkeepers Global Goals Award from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.[29] The Farmlink Project's work has been featured in The New York Times, CNN, ABC World News Tonight, and major national television networks in the US.[30][21][12][31]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Sheldon, Marissa (October 3, 2023). "The Farmlink Project Connects Excess Produce with Families in Need". NYC Food Policy Center. Retrieved November 20, 2023.
  2. ↑ de Jongh, Moniek (September 26, 2023). "Farmlink Project is on a mission to recover 1 billion pounds of fresh produce by 2025". Food Inspiration. Retrieved November 20, 2023.
  3. 1 2 Palmer, Phillip (May 19, 2023). "This group aims to keep food out of the landfill and get it to people who need it". ABC7 Los Angeles. Retrieved November 20, 2023.
  4. 1 2 Hyman, Lizzie (April 6, 2023). "College Pals Raise $15M and Collect 100 Million Lbs. of Surplus Food to Fight Food Waste and Insecurity". People. Retrieved November 20, 2023.
  5. ↑ Magazine, Q. S. R. (December 14, 2022). "Chipotle Partners with The Farmlink Project to Donate Over 10M Pounds of Produce". QSR Magazine. Retrieved November 20, 2023.
  6. ↑ Rosenberg, Lizzy (November 20, 2020). "What You Need to Know About the Farmlink Project, and Its Partnership With Chipotle". Green Matters. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
  7. 1 2 Dubbins, Andrew (2022-03-02). "How Farmlink Helped Save Endangered L.A. Food Banks". LAmag - Culture, Food, Fashion, News & Los Angeles. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
  8. 1 2 Littleton, Cynthia (2020-05-14). "Idled College Students Attack Food Waste Problem With FarmLink Project". Variety. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
  9. ↑ "Conversations on COVID: Students organize to take food from farms to food banks". Brown University. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
  10. ↑ magazine, STANFORD (2023-03-28). "Food Chain Fix". stanfordmag.org. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
  11. ↑ Blevins, Jason (2023-10-05). "A big idea about feeding people straight from the farm gets center stage at Original Thinkers festival". The Colorado Sun. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
  12. 1 2 McCarthy, Kelly; Noll, Eric; Francis, Enjoli (June 25, 2020). "FarmLink students to David Muir: We've seen the suffering". ABC News. Retrieved November 21, 2023.
  13. ↑ Tully, Tracey (April 30, 2020). "Food Lines a Mile Long in America's Second-Wealthiest State". The New York Times. Retrieved November 21, 2023.
  14. ↑ Zhou, Li (2020-05-09). "The current hunger crisis in the US, in photos". Vox. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
  15. ↑ Yaffe-Bellany, David; Corkery, Michael (April 11, 2020). "Dumped Milk, Smashed Eggs, Plowed Vegetables: Food Waste of the Pandemic". The New York Times. Retrieved November 21, 2023.
  16. ↑ "Celebrating a Year of Food Recovery with The Farmlink Project". Food Recovery Network. 2021-04-13. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
  17. ↑ Cole, Amanda L. (2023-07-18). "BridgeTECH Preview: The Farmlink Project". NonProfit PRO. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
  18. 1 2 3 Release, Industry Press (2022-03-04). "Farmlink Project redistributed 60M pounds of produce in two years". The Packer. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
  19. ↑ "Gates Foundation Honors 2023 Goalkeepers Awardees, Announces Commitments to Advance the Sustainable Development Goals". Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
  20. ↑ "The Farmlink Project and FRN - A Partnership that has Recovered Over 1 Million Pounds of Surplus Food". Food Recovery Network. 2021-06-11. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
  21. 1 2 Torgan, Allie (2022-06-30). "These friends rescued harvests headed for the trash and helped turn food waste into millions of meals". CNN. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
  22. ↑ "Catalyzing Capital: FarmLink - ReFED, Inc". refed.org. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
  23. ↑ "Aidan Reilly | Citizen Honors | CMOHS". Congressional Medal of Honor Society. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
  24. ↑ "Brown student who co-founded Farmlink named National Medal of Honor Service Act winner". Brown University. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
  25. ↑ University, Stanford (2021-04-19). "Stanford junior wins 2021 Congressional Medal of Honor Society Service Award". Stanford Report. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
  26. ↑ "Forbes 30 Under 30 2022: Social Impact". Forbes. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
  27. ↑ Good, Multiplying (2022-09-30). "MULTIPLYING GOOD ANNOUNCES 50TH ANNIVERSARY "JEFFERSON AWARDS" AND HONOREES". GlobeNewswire News Room. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
  28. ↑ "Meet the 2021 Pritzker Environmental Genius Award candidates #10 - 13". Institute of the Environment and Sustainability at UCLA. 2021-08-09. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
  29. ↑ "The Goalkeepers Global Goals Award winners". www.gatesfoundation.org. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
  30. ↑ Corkery, Michael; Yaffe-Bellany, David (May 2, 2020). "'We Had to Do Something': Trying to Prevent Massive Food Waste". The New York Times. Retrieved November 21, 2023.
  31. ↑ "Nonprofit The Farmlink Project matches farmers with surplus produce with those in need - CBS News". www.cbsnews.com. 2022-01-22. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
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