NEW
YORK, July 15, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- More
than 2,400 specialty food makers showcased the newest and best in
specialty food with buyers, distributors, media, and influencers
during the Specialty Food Association's (SFA) 68th Summer Fancy
Food Show at the Javits Center from June
23-25. On the final day of the Show, SFA worked with 125
City Harvest volunteers to rescue 95 pallets totaling more than
78,000 pounds of food from the Show. This entire surplus was made
available to New Yorkers living with food insecurity.
The surplus specialty food was made
available to New Yorkers living with food insecurity.
SFA and City Harvest have partnered on the Summer Fancy Food
Show food recovery program since 1997, with Summer Fancy Food Show
exhibitors having donated more than 2.1 million pounds of food to
City Harvest during the partnership.
"New York City and New Yorkers
are incredibly important to the Specialty Food Association, and our
team is honored to have this opportunity with City Harvest to give
back to the city that hosts us year after year," said Phil Robinson, senior vice president of Member
Development at SFA. "SFA is always working to make Fancy Food Shows
more sustainable, and we're grateful to all the City Harvest
volunteers who helped SFA and our members ensure that unused food
from this year's Show did not go to waste, but rather to the people
of New York City in need."
"Every year, the Summer Fancy Food Show is one of City Harvest's
most important food rescues," said Jenna
Harris, Associate Director of Donor Relations and Supply
Chain at City Harvest. "Right now, visits to New York City food pantries are up more than
75% compared to pre-pandemic levels. The need for food in our city
is extremely high, and this donation allows our neighbors
experiencing food insecurity to have high-quality food on their
tables. We are very grateful for our ongoing partnership with the
Specialty Food Association and all of the Fancy Food Show vendors
who so generously support our work."
The next Fancy Food Shows are the 2025 Winter Fancy Food
Show, January 19-21 in Las Vegas and the 2025 Summer Fancy Food
Show, June 29-July 1 in New York City.
About City Harvest:
City Harvest is New York's first and largest food rescue
organization, collecting perfectly good food that would otherwise
go to waste to help feed the millions of New Yorkers who struggle
to put meals on their tables. In over 40 years serving New Yorkers
experiencing food insecurity, we have rescued more than one billion
pounds of fresh, nutritious food and delivered it—free of charge—to
hundreds of food pantries, soup kitchens, community partners, and
our own Mobile Markets® across the five boroughs. This year, we
will rescue and distribute more than 77 million pounds of
nutritious food to our neighbors in need. By redirecting that food
to families, we will also prevent the equivalent of more than 20
million kilograms of CO2 from entering the atmosphere.
Named one of America's Top 100 Charities by Forbes, City
Harvest also works alongside our community partners to build their
capacity, expand nutrition education, and advocate for systems
change through effective public policy. Since our founding in 1982,
City Harvest has always been there to feed our city—one day, one
meal, one New Yorker at a time. To learn more, please visit
cityharvest.org
About the Specialty Food Association
The
Specialty Food Association (SFA) was founded in 1952 and is the
not-for-profit trade association of the $207-billion specialty food industry.
Representing more than 3,600 businesses worldwide, SFA champions
industry participation and success for a diverse community of
makers, buyers, importers, distributors, and service providers by
developing resources, information, education, and events
that celebrate innovation and inclusivity. SFA owns and operates
the Fancy Food Shows as well as the sofi™ Awards,
which have honored excellence in specialty food and beverage
annually since 1972. SFA also produces the e-newsletter SFA News
Daily, the Trendspotter Panel annual predictions and
Fancy Food Show reports, the State of the Specialty Food
Industry Report, and Today's Specialty Food Consumer
research. Find out more https://www.specialtyfood.com/
online and connect with SFA on Facebook, X,
Instagram, LinkedIn, and
TikTok.Facebook, X, Instagram,
LinkedIn, and TikTok.
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SOURCE Specialty Food Association