Food Rescue Partner Veer Agarwal Talks Partnering with Table to Table

Veer Agarwal has done more to combat food insecurity and food waste in the past year than other do in their lifetimes.

Agarwal is a rising senior and the founder of the ResQFood Club at Livingston High School. He founded the club, and recognized nonprofit organization, to bridge the gap between food waste and food insecurity. He was interviewed on My9’s “New Jersey Now” program with journalist Mark Bonamo. The episode aired Sunday. Veer entered into a partnership with Table to Table last year in order to increase his reach and rescue more food.

“This partnership took us to a whole new level. We were able to operationalize our success,” Agarwal said. “We were trained by Table to Table on how to best pick up and deliver food and were able to track all of our food rescues using the Table to Table I-Rescue App. That app made it much easier to quantify the number of food rescues we completed, the pounds of food we donated, and the environmental impact we’ve had as a result of the rescues. Whenever we needed help, Table to Table was always there to support us.”

Agarwal founded ResQFood with a few friends rescuing food. Since then it’s expanded to 38 volunteers, who have performed 380 rescues and donated 20,000 pounds of nutritious food.

Agarwal was recognized with the President’s Volunteer Service Award’s highest honor—the Lifetime Achievement Award thanks to his volunteer food rescue efforts with Table to Table.

Signing up to be a Table to Table volunteer is easy. Julie Kinner, Table to Table’s VP of Operations, said all you have to do is download the Table to Table I-Rescue app, powered by Food Rescue Hero, on your phone to become a food rescue hero! You’ll complete a simple registration process and volunteer agreement, and then you can get started. The app walks you through every step! This is what Veer and his team uses.

Volunteers of all ages are welcome to volunteer with our food rescue program. However, the driver must have a valid driver’s license, and a valid vehicle registration and insurance. 

Since we launched, more than 350 volunteers have completed more than 9,600 rescues and delivered more than 2 million pounds of donated food that would have been thrown away.

As New Jersey’s first and largest food rescue, our mission is to reduce food waste and provide nourishment to our food-insecure neighbors throughout North Jersey. We rescue millions of pounds of fresh food annually that would otherwise be wasted and end up in landfills, contributing to climate change. We deliver it to partner organizations who support the nearly 1 million people in our area who need it most.

Together, we can reduce food waste in our home and make a positive impact on the planet. Every little bit of effort—no matter how small–leads to change.

• Related: Veer Agarwal: January Volunteer Spotlight
• Related: Agarwal Addressed Food Waste With New ResQFood Program
• Related: Ways You Can Help Table to Table Right Now
• Related: Q&A with Julie Kinner