According to Feeding America, 80 million tons of food go to waste each year in the United States. At the same time,  12.8% of households in the country experienced food insecurity in 2022.

In Minnesota, TC Food Justice works to bridge this gap by rescuing unsalable food from co-ops, grocery stores and farmers markets and re-distributing it to local hunger-relief organizations. In 2023, the Prime Together Foundation awarded TC Food Justice a grant to support their work, which continues to support hunger-relief efforts in Minnesota.

“We are so grateful for the Prime Together Foundation because they are providing us the funds that allow us to increase our efforts and provide fresh, healthy food to local organizations.” —Ann Hill, executive director of TC Food Justice

One of the beneficiaries of TC Food Justice’s food rescues is Soup for You! Café, which provides nutritious lunches to neighborhood residents five days a week. They make the food from scratch using ingredients that TC Food Justice delivers.  What makes Soup for You! Café unique is its restaurant-style operation — volunteers take each person’s order, and they are served at their table.

“It’s all about dignity and making these people feel like they’re important and deserve delicious food,” Hill noted. “No one deserves to go a day without a meal.”

“I was here last week and was speaking to a man who said he has never been able to control his diabetes and high blood pressure until he was able to come here and get (a) regular supply of good, fresh, nutritious vegetables,” Hill added. “We want to focus on providing the food that might not be shelf stable, but that’s so important to everyone’s health. We can’t do this without the support of our community, which includes the Prime Together Foundation.”