The Asbury Park Plate to Pantry Initiative connects Asbury Park-area restaurants with surplus food to Interfaith Neighbors Community Food Connection member pantries and community spaces in need of food.
The main goals are to reduce food waste and nourish community members. In addition, we want to foster connections between local restaurants and food pantries so we can work together to accomplish systemic change in our food system.
This initiative is funded by a grant from PSEG, one of New Jersey’s largest utility companies. The City of Asbury Park received this PSEG funding through the non-profit organization, Sustainable Jersey, due to the efforts of the City of Asbury Park committee on sustainability, The Green Team. Sustainable Jersey is a network of municipalities, schools and school districts that work collectively to achieve sustainability in New Jersey. The City of Asbury Park chose Interfaith Neighbors to lead this effort because of the organization’s history of food justice work and success in creating community connections.
One of the first restaurant to step up was Dolce Fantasia. The Plate to Pantry Initiative has connected this restaurant with the United Fellowship Baptist Church Manna Pantry to provide restaurant quality surplus food for the pantry recipients. This pantry has operated since 2022 and is located on the Eastside of Asbury Park. Every 2nd and 4th Saturday from 9:30 to 11:30 am, Manna Pantry opens its doors to the community to receive food.
Other restaurants and caterers are also involved, including Asbury Park-based Rosa’s Kitchen, Cardinal Provisions, Robinson’s Ale House, and Flora Vegetarian Food Truck. Colonial Bakery in Lavallette is also a contributor. These restaurants are partnered with Asbury Park Senior Center, Jersey Shore Rescue Mission, and The Center, who carry out distribution to the community.
The Green Team of Asbury Park, a citizen-driven sustainability committee, wrote the grant that funds the Plate to Pantry Initiative and are strong proponents of its mission. The Green Team is dedicated to environmental justice and improving sustainability efforts in Asbury Park. Reducing food waste and simultaneously distributing high quality food to our residents is a win-win solution that just makes sense.
Our hopes and dreams for the Plate to Pantry Initiative is for more Asbury Park-based Community Food Connection coalition food pantries and community spaces to benefit from restaurant food donations that would otherwise be thrown away. We would love to see more local restaurants become involved and help those in need. And we hope that our success here in Asbury Park will serve as a model for other communities in New Jersey.
The Plate to Pantry Initiative of Community Food Connection/Interfaith Neighbors is grateful for the generosity of Sustainable Jersey and PSEG for the grant that fuels this work. There is hope this initiative will catch on amongst more Asbury Park restaurants and spread to make a meaningful impact on this community and beyond.