Roslindale Food Collective

Our work began in 2018, but we were officially founded in January, 2020, the Roslindale Food Collective (RFC) seeks to unite our community to reduce tremendous waste of nutritious foods, alleviate local food insecurity, and foster existing mutual aid systems in Roslindale and surrounding areas of Boston, MA. 

We rescue 2500-3000 pounds of fresh food each week from more than 10 retail partners. We then sort and distribute that food at program each Sunday, where we give each family a 30-pound box of groceries. 
 

Our collective is focused on sustainability, food equity, and mutual aid with dignity.

-Sustainability.  As we have grown, we began fundraising to purchase food to distribute; although we still primarily rely on grocery donations we rescue each week. We are avid recyclers and compost all of our unusable donated produce. We use social media, community boards, and a growing network of dedicated neighbors to ensure nothing we rescue is wasted.

-Food equity.  Our mission is to provide consistent access to healthy and culturally diverse food to everyone in our community. We do not discriminate on any basis, and do not require any kind of qualification, documentation or limitation for the food we provide.  We are 100% staffed by volunteers who are community stakeholders and collective beneficiaries. 

-Mutual aid.  We maintain that we are not here for community service but rather mutual aid and that there is enough food for everyone. All volunteers can help support their families with food when they packing bags and boxes for others. We work hand-in-hand with neighbors who donate their unwanted items to the community fridges, and we provide clear, consistent information on how to do so.

-Dignity.  Receiving a box of groceries from RFC is a friendly, safe experience that provides over 30 pounds of pre-packed groceries that includes (but is not limited to) fresh produce, shelf-stable pantry items, dairy, eggs, and plenty of “specialty surprises” that might otherwise be unavailable to many people in our community. We believe that food access is a right, that there is plenty for everyone, and that the "bread line" mentality is outdated and unnecessary in today's world.

We are proud partners of the Mayor's Office of Food Justice, Neighborhood Food Action Collaborative (NFAC) and Health Leads USA.