Almost 2 million New York City residents are living in poverty, according to the nonprofit Robin Hood, and one-quarter of them are children. While numbers like that are hard to swallow, there is hope. In the United States, solutions surrounding hunger and food wastage are being significantly rewritten by individuals like Matt Jozwiak. On a mission to create a more equitable and sustainable food system, the CEO of Rethink Food is redefining how surplus food can be redirected to feed those in need.
“I think that we really focus on dignity, culture, celebration, and nutrition, which a lot of great organizations do. But I think coming from a hospitality and restaurant lens, it’s really important,” Matt Jozwiak says. “The output of a meal is obviously super important, but the how you do it and who you include and why — I think we’re changing the narrative on that quite a bit.”
Rethink Food recently opened a larger Sustainable Community Kitchen at 116 West Houston Street in the Greenwich Village neighborhood in New York City to accommodate the increasing demands for its services. The organization is crafting meals made with quality donated ingredients and always served with intention. This is the evolution of its original commissary kitchen, where it all began.
Since 2017, Rethink has allocated over $100 million to assist more than 165 restaurants and food businesses, enabling the delivery of more than 24 million meals to over 237 community-based organizations. Jozwiak and Rethink Food are continually developing partnerships with restaurants and food purveyors.
Preserving Dignity Through Thoughtful Meal Distribution
Rethink Food’s new multiuse space opened on March 27, which is Rethink Food Day, a proclamation declared by New York City Mayor Eric Adams and NYC Council Speaker Adrienne E. Adams, and presented by Kate MacKenzie, the executive director of the Mayor’s Office of Food Policy.
“We’re constantly trying to reach, educate, and engage new supporters in our unique approach to serving our local community,” Matt Jozwiak said in a press release. “This new two-area space reflects our culture of centering community leaders, culinary professionals, and hospitality at the heart of our approach to creating a more sustainable and equitable food system.”
With roots as an accomplished chef, Jozwiak knows how food can change lives.
“Our sustainable community kitchen embodies our mission of successfully repurposing excess food into nutritious meals,” the Rethink Food co-founder said. “We’re constantly trying to reach, educate, and engage new supporters in our unique approach to serving our local community. This new space focuses on our community-driven program and directly sharing our work with you.”
And in a video, Jozwiak said, “We give grants to small businesses on one side of the organization, and on this side of the organization, we collect excess food, make meals, and give them away.”
Rethink Food’s culinary director Ken Baker is spearheading operations in the new kitchen, which will offer a merchandise section and coffee station serving Stumptown Coffee. The artisanal coffee brand initially partnered with Rethink Food in 2021.
“[In the new kitchen space,] we have around 15 culinary team members making nutritious meals for local communities. We collect from great restaurants in New York like Eleven Madison Park [and] grocery stores like Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods,” Matt Jozwiak explained.
“It’s hard for restaurateurs and grocery stores to know exactly how much [food to purchase]. So it’s fresh, delicious, beautiful food we have. And we bring all the food back, and our culinary team makes meals that are distributed to the community. The food is headed in the right direction. It’s been really positive the last three years.”
Matt Jozwiak says the operation is constantly configuring more efficient ways to eliminate food waste and make the maximum number of meals possible to help even more people in need.
“We’re really looking at broader forms of preservation and not just taking the excess food, but really being very intentional about preservation and distribution,” Jozwiak adds.
The Power of Food To Unite and Uplift
Rethink Food is reinventing how food is prepared and shared, says Jozwiak.
“Our culinary group is made up of incredible, really, really, really talented chefs,” he says. “A lot of times, chefs in community service don’t get highlighted the same way chefs at Michelin star restaurants do.”
Just as he aims to change people’s attitudes toward food scarcity, he’s working to redefine the entire story of how and what people eat.
Whether it’s gourmet gumbo, cabbage and pork dumplings, or savory swordfish, Rethink Food is never afraid to take the recipients of its food on a culinary adventure for the senses.
A big part of Jozwiak’s goal is educating people — and Rethink Food’s new Sustainable Community Kitchen will help everyone gain a better understanding of how and why people are in need of nourishing meals. It will also unite them through learning experiences, curated dinners with chefs, special events, and community programming.
“Having this space here in New York City, I think it’s a real game changer,” Rethink Food co-founder and chef Daniel Humm said at the grand opening of the new Greenwich Village location.
Erik Bottcher, New York City Council member, District 3, has been celebrating Rethink Food’s progress in his city. “We’re throwing away 40% of the food we produce. We can do a lot better than this,” Bottcher said during the opening celebration of Rethink Food’s new location.
“But we’ve got to do something about it, and that’s what Rethink is doing — capturing this excess healthy food that can be repurposed or just delivered to others. That’s what’s going to happen on this site — 15,000 meals a week.”
Bottcher further shared how it’s going to make an immeasurable difference in so many lives. “We’re going to look back during our lifetimes at the time we stepped up and made big changes so future generations don’t have to suffer from food waste. I know we can do it, and I know we will, and that’s because of Rethink Food and all of you.”
