About Us

We reduce food insecurity.

We rescue excess food.

We promote sustainable food policy.

Our Mission

Gotham Food Pantry, a 501-(c)(3) nonprofit, advances food justice by establishing food rescue operations in marginalized communities and advocating for equitable, sustainable food systems. We specialize in partnering with resident leaders and local retailers to expand nutritious food access in low-income public housing complexes throughout New York City.

Since our founding in 2020, we have rescued and distributed over 20 million pounds of food to food-insecure New Yorkers.

Sustainability

Our efforts align with the following United Nations Sustainability Goals

Our Story

Our journey began with a few dedicated volunteers who took action when faced with the unprecedented food insecurity brought about by COVID-19. While the city’s largest food rescuers were brimming with food, many of the agencies where they delivered that food were closed due to the pandemic.

Interested in hosting a community fridge?

We rented a truck and went to warehouses in Queens and Brooklyn, filling our truck with pallets of produce and shelf-stable food, and then brought that food to All Souls Church where we distributed it every Saturday morning. Word about our distributions spread through the mutual aid community. Soon, volunteers from numerous community fridges and houses of worship arrived with cars or handcarts to take back food to their communities.

Months into the pandemic, resident leaders at the NYCHA Dyckman Houses asked for help setting up a community fridge. Thanks to an emergency grant from Robin Hood Foundation, we installed the fridge, and with the help of the tenant association and the local businesses, we kept it filled with nutritious food that residents and neighbors depended on.

Since 2020, our small group of volunteers has grown into a network of over 300. Our single weekly distribution of five pallets (~7,500 pounds) has grown to over 50 pallets (75,000+ pounds) per week. Our one public housing food rescue operation has grown to over fifty complexes, along with additional food sourcing for many mutual aid groups and houses of worship.

While our size and scope have changed, the impetus that drove us into this work has remained steadfast:

Achieve a New York City where food security is a way of life.