food insecurity Archives - Table to Table

Editor’s note: Feeding Hope: The “Ride to Independence” podcast interviewed Table to Table’s Executive Director Heather Thompson, who spoke about our mission and our Kick Hunger Out of NJ Tour during the FIFA World Cup.

Table to Table, New Jersey’s first food rescue organization, is feeding hope. It has been combating food waste and hunger since 1999.

Executive Director Heather Thompson shares how the organization collects fresh food from local businesses and events, like the FIFA World Cup, to feed the community. Their Kick Hunger out of New Jersey tour shows how large events can contribute to food security by rescuing surplus food. By collaborating with a wide network of pantries and shelters, Table to Table ensures that delicious, nutritious meals reach those in need without delay, proving that the solution lies in better distribution rather than more food production.

Table to Table is New Jersey’s first and largest food rescue nonprofit, bridging the gap between food being wasted and people facing food insecurity. We bring rescued fresh, nutritious food to 276 community partners, including social service organizations, pantries, shelters, fresh produce markets and centralized distribution hubs. Food is provided free of charge. Through this, Table to Table touches a diversity of those in need, including families, children, veterans, and older adults, making good nutrition accessible while serving as a stimulus for other longer-term benefits. Since 1999 we have rescued more than 133,271 tons of nutritious food — enough for 266,542,863 million meals — and delivered it to our neighbors in need, saving over 612 metric tons of methane saved.

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‘We couldn’t do it without Table to Table’s help.’

Editor’s note: This story originally appeared on CBS New York.

A New Jersey charity is on a mission to make sure nothing goes to waste at 2026 Men’s World Cup Watch Parties in the state.

Table to Table, a Saddle Brook-based nonprofit, launched an initiative to save leftover food from FIFA watch parties and get it to those who need it most all over northern and central Jersey.

As soccer fan fever spreads across the Garden State, so do the crowds and the food. But what’s left behind doesn’t have to go to waste.

The Kick Hunger out of New Jersey Tour is part of the call to rescue surplus meals from World Cup watch parties at restaurants and event spaces, food trucks, and fan festivals.

“We’re packing up food for hundreds of meals that’s already cooked, already prepared, ready to eat. And that is such a gift to our communities,” said Heather Thompson, with Table to Table.

Restaurants, venues and watch party event organizers can donate surplus food if it’s been prepared in commercial kitchens, Table to Table says.

During the 39-day tournament, the charity’s tour van is traveling around the state as crews work in real-time to pack up meals within hours and get them out to local partners.

Food sent to Parkside Community Church in Westwood quickly goes to families who rely on fresh options.

“The clients that we have, who come here regularly, this is their grocery shopping for the week. They can’t afford to buy food on their own,” said Lisa Bontemps, with the church.

A Win for All

Table to Table’s initiative is a win on two fronts: cutting down food waste and helping tackle hunger across North Jersey.

“We realized that there was a real opportunity to get even more of that food out into our community and make sure that those celebrations benefited as many people as possible,” said Thompson.

“This is critical for them. We couldn’t do it without Table to Table’s help,” said Bontemps.

With dozens of World Cup events still ahead, organizers said they’re just getting started.

The tournament’s championship match will be on July 19 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford.

Related:

Saddle Brook-based nonprofit is collecting surplus food at World Cup festivals, such as Flag Cities

Editor’s note: This story originally appeared on binje.com. Click here to read the entire article.

If you’re planning an event to celebrate the World Cup, make sure you have plenty of food. And if you have plenty of food left over, make sure you remember Table to Table, North Jersey’s leading food-rescue network.

Based in Saddle Brook, Table to Table turns surplus meals into immediate help for hungry neighbors. That’s the basis of its Kick Hunger Out of New Jersey Tour.

The Table to Table Tour Van has been on the road throughout the World Cup, rescuing surplus food from the Goya Presents Flag Cities fan festivals, as well as local parties and special events, and delivering directly to our neighbors in need.

Jim Kirkos, Chief Executive Officer of the Meadowlands Chamber and one of the creators of the Flag Cities festivals, said his group is eager to support the fine work Table to Table does.

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Editor’s note: The above screenshot of photos first appeared in 201 Magazine’s June 2026 issue. Click here to view the photos.

201 Magazine ran a series of photos in their “be social” section from the 16th annual Behind The Seams fashion show that benefitted Table to Table. The event raised $200,000, enough to fund the rescue of nutritious food for 2 million healthy meals for our hungry neighbors.

Photo Gallery

The Behind the Seams Fashion Show was held at Bottagra Restaurant and benefitted Table to Table.

Editor’s note: BC The Mag covered the Behind The Seams Fashion Show at Bottagra in Hawthorne. For more photos, click here.

Editor’s note: This story originally appeared on binje.com. Click here to read the entire article.

Table to Table’s Vice President of Operations Julie Kinner will be honored with a Russ Berrie Making a Difference Award Friday.

Kinner will receive the organization’s Transformational Leadership Award. This award recognizes inspiring leaders and volunteers nominated by previous honorees.

“Through their dedicated service to others, they extend the ripple effect of good works that will continue to transform lives and communities around New Jersey,” the organization said.

This year is final year the awards will be administered; 2026 is the first time the Russell Berrie Foundation has designated half of its award to Gen Z changemakers younger than 27. The foundation has honored 500 individuals in its 30-year history.

“This is Russ’s lasting legacy: to connect the past to the future and create a community of individuals who, together, are making a positive impact,” said Angelica Berrie, president of the Russell Berrie Foundation.

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Editor’s note: This story was aggregated from an article by Montclair Local. Click here to read the entire article.

Nonprofit leaders, government officials, and community agencies gathered last week for the third annual Partners for Good Conference hosted by Table to Table, a food rescue organization serving North Jersey.

The daylong event, co-sponsored by Montclair State University’s Social Work and Child Advocacy Department, brought together food pantries, shelters, and service providers that distribute surplus food to residents across Bergen, Essex, Passaic, Hudson, and Morris counties.

The conference featured panel discussions, breakout sessions, and presentations focused on challenges facing food assistance providers, including rising demand and limited resources. Officials from the New Jersey Office of the Food Security Advocate also presented the state’s new Food Security Strategic Plan and answered questions from attendees.

Table to Table is New Jersey’s first and largest food rescue nonprofit, bridging the gap between food being wasted and people facing food insecurity. We bring rescued fresh, nutritious food to 276 community partners, including social service organizations, pantries, shelters, fresh produce markets and centralized distribution hubs. Food is provided free of charge. Through this, Table to Table touches a diversity of those in need, including families, children, veterans, and older adults, making good nutrition accessible while serving as a stimulus for other longer-term benefits. Since 1999 we have rescued more than 133,271 tons of nutritious food — enough for 266,542,863 meals — and delivered it to our neighbors in need, saving over 612 metric tons of methane.

Related:

Montclair State University’s Social Work and Child Advocacy Department Co-Sponsors Event

April 30, 2025 – Saddle Brook, NJ – Table to Table, New Jersey’s first and largest food rescue organization, successfully concluded its third annual Partners for Good Conference co-sponsored by Montclair State University’s Social Work and Child Advocacy Department. The Partners for Good Conference is designed to connect, inform and empower the nonprofit’s partner pantries, social service agencies, shelters, and other community partners, who distribute the surplus food delivered by Table to Table to communities in need throughout Bergen, Essex, Passaic, Hudson, and Morris counties.

“This year’s Partners for Good Conference provided our community partners with an interactive venue to network, learn, and share resources to support their vital work in our communities,” said Heather Thompson, Executive Director, Table to Table. “Many of our partners are navigating extraordinary challenges – increasing need among our neighbors, limited staffs and budgets, and a multitude of unpredictable circumstances. This annual gathering is an opportunity to not only share critical information and build connections among our partners; it also welcomes State and County leaders to listen and engage in our collective efforts to reduce food insecurity,” Thompson concluded.

The day-long Conference featured partner panels, breakout discussions, and presentations addressing critical and timely topics that were informed by Table to Table’s Community Advisory Board. The afternoon capped off with a discussion about New Jersey’s newly launched Food Security Strategic Plan led by Mark Dinglasan and Dr. Jenny Schrum from the New Jersey Office of the Food Security Advocate (OFSA).

“OFSA applauds Table to Table for another successful Annual Partners for Good Conference. It was a pleasure for Dr. Jenny and me to present the statewide food security strategic plan and implementation tool kit to the attendees and to answer questions,” said Mark Dinglasan, Executive Director, NJ Office of the Food Security Advocate. “New Jersey’s food security efforts, including the strategic plan, are rooted in the belief that true food security can only be achieved through multisector partnerships that have consensus and collaboration among interconnected partners. Hunger, poverty, and food insecurity are insidious foes that are highly complex and interconnected. Our efforts to combat them must be just as interconnected, and it is through events like the annual Partners for Good Conference that we are able to build these rich connections,” Dinglasan concluded.

“We were pleased to partner with Table to Table for the second year in a row to support these important efforts and realize Montclair State University’s mission to serve our state’s dynamic, varied communities,” said Milton A. Fuentes, Psy.D. Interim Chair, Social Work and Child Advocacy Special Advisor to the Provost/Professor, Psychology Department, Montclair State University.

Table to Table’s Partners for Good Conference was made possible through the generosity of our sponsors: Montclair State University’s Social Work and Child Advocacy, College of Humanities and Social Sciences; ShopRite Inserra Supermarkets Inc.; Horizon; Something to Talk About Marketing; Dorfman Abrams Music Accountants & Advisors; Bergen County Camera; and Premium Digital Office Solutions.

About Table to Table

Table to Table (http://www.tabletotable.org) is New Jersey’s first and largest food rescue nonprofit, bridging the gap between food being wasted and people facing food insecurity.We bring rescued fresh, nutritious food to 276 community partners, including social service organizations, pantries, shelters, fresh produce markets and centralized distribution hubs. Food is provided free of charge. Through this, Table to Table touches a diversity of those in need, including families, children, veterans, and older adults, making good nutrition accessible while serving as a stimulus for other longer-term benefits. Since 1999 we have rescued more than 133,271 tons of nutritious food — enough for 266,542,863 meals — and delivered it to our neighbors in need, saving over 612 metric tons of methane.

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Editor’s note: This blog post was aggregated from an article by the New York City Food Policy Center at Hunter College. Click here to read the entire article.

Government has always tracked food security through the lens of affordability through the U.S. Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey, which is distributed annually to about 40,000 households.

The definition of food security as adopted by the United Nations’ Committee on World Food Security, is a condition where all people, at all times, have physical, social, and economic access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active, healthy lifestyle.

Dr. Jenny Schrum, the director of research and evaluation strategy at the New Jersey Office of the Food Security Advocate (OFSA), sought to go deeper with a new food security measurement model. The OFSA, headed by Executive Director Mark Dinglasan, is the first and only state-level food security agency in the country.

“We always associate food security with money, which is incredibly salient, but not the whole story,” Schrum told the New York City Food Policy Center. “If people have enough money, if may give you access. But there are many reasons people are food insecurity.”

As an outgrowth of the research, OFSA created the New Jersey Food Security Strategic Plan, a three-year initiative to guide and coordinate actions in addressing food insecurity statewide. A recent report by the U.S. Department of Agriculture released shows that one in 10 New Jersey households were food insecure between 2022 and 2024.

Schrum’s research also led the OFSA to survey more than 2,000 New Jersey residents from communities with high rates of food insecurity. Those findings were documented in the OFSA’s Exploring the Six Dimensions of Food Security in New Jersey. The report has an interactive dashboard that lets readers explore results from the survey.

“With inflation, a changing economy, and climate change reshaping what we can grow and where, food insecurity is going to affect far more people than it does today,” Schrum told the New York City Food Policy Center. “If we only ever respond to the emergency, we never address what’s causing it. Better definitions, better data, better program data, that’s how we start to get ahead of it.”

Table to Table is New Jersey’s first and largest food rescue nonprofit, bridging the gap between food being wasted and people facing food insecurity. We bring rescued fresh, nutritious food to 276 community partners, including social service organizations, pantries, shelters, fresh produce markets and centralized distribution hubs. Food is provided free of charge. Through this, Table to Table touches a diversity of those in need, including families, children, veterans, and older adults, making good nutrition accessible while serving as a stimulus for other longer-term benefits. Since 1999 we have rescued more than 133,271 tons of nutritious food — enough for 266,542,863 meals — and delivered it to our neighbors in need, saving over 612 metric tons of methane.

Related:

To our Food Rescue Hero Volunteers,

I want to take a moment this National Volunteer Appreciation Month to personally thank you for the incredible role you play in advancing our mission. Because of your dedication, compassion, and willingness to step up day after day, we continue to rescue and deliver millions of pounds of fresh, nutritious food to our neighbors in need. That is not just impactful; it is life-changing work.

You are more than volunteers — you are a vital part of the Table to Table family. Every pickup, every delivery, every moment you give helps reduce food waste while bringing hope and nourishment to communities across New Jersey. The difference you make is real, and it is deeply appreciated.

April is National Volunteer Appreciation Month, and there is no better time to recognize and celebrate the extraordinary commitment you bring to this work. This month is a reminder of just how essential volunteers are to communities everywhere, but here at Table to Table, we see your impact every single day. We are incredibly grateful for all that you do and proud to celebrate YOU.

Simply put, none of this is possible without you.

Thanks again for your time, your energy, and your belief in what we do. Together, let’s continue to turn surplus into sustenance – one rescue at a time.

With gratitude,

A stylized handwritten signature in black ink, featuring looping, cursive strokes with overlapping lines and flourishes on a light background.

Heather Thompson,

Executive Director

Table to Table

Tag: food insecurity

‘We couldn’t do it without Table to Table’s help.’

A Win for All

Saddle Brook-based nonprofit is collecting surplus food at World Cup festivals, such as Flag Cities

The Behind the Seams Fashion Show was held at Bottagra Restaurant and benefitted Table to Table.

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