Boulder Food Rescue on Righteous Crowd this Week
Boulder Food Rescue
Redistributing Produce and Power
In this week’s Torah portion, Jacob uses food as a way to steal his brother’s birthright from him. Esau returns from the field and begs his brother for some lentil stew, Jacob agrees, but in exchange for Isaac’s blessing. In this portion we see the flaws of Jacob and are inspired by this story to support an organization committed to food justice. Boulder Food Rescue is a nonprofit food justice organization that aims to create a more just and less wasteful food system. Boulder Food Rescue redistributes food that would otherwise be wasted to those experiencing food insecurity in Boulder, CO as well as partners with the Boulder JCC.
Read our interview with Executive Director Hayden Dansky.
What is the mission of Boulder Food Rescue?
Boulder Food Rescue works to create a more just and less wasteful food system. We do this through the sustainable redistribution of healthy food to low-income communities.
Why did you decide to start/support your organization?
In a country that uses immense amounts of resources to overproduce food, it’s a shame that we waste up to 40% of everything we produce. Furthermore, in the United States, 1 in 8 (or 50 million) people lack access to healthy and nourishing food for their families. Boulder Food Rescue works to tackle both of these issues simultaneously, by revaluing food that would otherwise be wasted, by distributing it to people who do not have access, and by giving people a hand and a voice in their own food access. We allow individuals to create their own programs and show up for their own communities. Also, in order to minimize environmental impact, we do most of our food redistribution by bicycle!
Who has inspired you in the work that you are doing?
Food is connected to people, animals and the environment. All of these are connected to one another. The biggest inspiration day after day is that the people who we "serve" are actively volunteering and showing up for their community. We take the produce directly to their communities and they participate by volunteering to distribute the food amongst their neighbors, having an active hand and voice in creating food access. They inspire me to do this work because they are actively organizing as well and we consistently blur the lines between who is "serving," and who is "being served."
What’s a story about Boulder Food Rescue that is meaningful to you?
When we first started Boulder Food Rescue we had a meal in the park open to anyone who wanted it. We served over a hundred meals of healthy fruits and vegetables, but one day, someone said, "this meal is different because we all sit down and eat together. It's not about those with resources showing up and serving those without. Its all about making connections and getting to know one another." This is still the value that we hold today. That this work isn't just about food, it’s about building relationships where food is our language.
What has surprised you about working Boulder Food Rescue?
We do things that make sense to us - allow people who experience food insecurity to volunteer, to have decision making power, to influence how things are done. I didn't know that most charities were set up with prohibitive barriers to doing this. For some reason, this just makes sense to me, that we would all work together to create solutions and that people with lived experiences have the most knowledge about what those solutions could be. I am continually surprised by the barriers that people face in participating and giving feedback. I'm also surprised at all the barriers that people face in accessing food, and all the hard work they do in order to feed their families nourishing food. Lastly, I'm surprised by how much PERFECTLY GOOD food gets thrown away every day!
What's the best part of your job and why?
I get to learn every day! I love this work because it not only challenges me to think critically about food systems and solutions to the overwhelming disparities between people and overwhelming amount of food waste. It challenges me to show up and learn, grow, be open to feedback and be receptive to doing things a little differently. I get to learn about nonprofits, fundraising, managing and most of all, I get to be in connection with others who care about the same things. Lastly, the work we do is not only about the external but it is about the internal as well - we show up for one another, respect each other, have a safe space for LGBTQ+ people and People of Color, and practice growing and learning internally as well. The people who work for BFR give me energy and lots of laughs.
How would you connect your organization to a Jewish text, holiday, value or experience?
Ha Lachma Anya is the magid section of the Passover Haggadah and it states:
This is the bread of affliction which our ancestors ate in the land of Egypt. Let all who are hungry come and eat; let all who are needy come and celebrate Passover. Now we are here; next year may we be in the Land of Israel. Now we are slaves; next year may we be free.
We believe that our work is firmly rooted in the current liberation of all people. That nobody is free until we are all free. Currently, people are suffering from lack of resources, income, and access to fresh and healthy food for their families. We believe that we all have an invested interest in this work to give people access to healthy and nourishing foods.
Tu B’Shvat celebrates the New Year of the Trees. We celebrate the fruit harvested and the bounty that the land provides. We participate in a Tu B’Shvat Seder on food justice in Boulder and will continue to do that as well. It is extremely important to use all of the food we produce from a resource perspective and to minimize our environmental impact which affects our ability to grow food as well.
Food justice is at the root of several Jewish traditions, values and holidays and we touch on many of these at Boulder Food Rescue.
What are some non-monetary ways for others to get involved in your organization or cause?
Volunteering - we have 150 active volunteers distributing food or supporting on the back end of our organization. Spreading the word - the more that people know about our work / food waste and food insecurity, the more we can do. Creating your own food rescue in your community - we support people doing this across the United States. Minimizing personal food waste - there are tons of tips and tricks online!
To learn more about Boulder Food Rescue, click here