West Roxbury resident drawn by mission, improving food access for neighbors in need
NEWTON, MA – New England food recovery organization, Spoonfuls, announced today that Irfan Alibhai, President of The Burkehaven Family Foundation, has joined its Board of Directors.
“I was introduced to Spoonfuls six years ago while searching for organizations involved in food insecurity and reducing food waste. Spoonfuls topped both lists, and that remains true today,” said Alibhai. “To be able to champion Spoonfuls’ mission in this new capacity and in this moment when our food system and food safety net face such enormous challenges feels particularly important.”
Alibhai, who’s spent the majority of his career in the nonprofit and philanthropic sector is the former Director of Finance and Operations at the GreenLight Fund and Director of Planning and Analysis for Teach for America.
Said Spoonfuls’ CEO, Ashley Stanley, “Irfan’s experience and perspective is so valuable. We’re working to execute on a strategic plan that involves new food recovery partnerships in new geographies. Irfan understands the role philanthropy plays in enabling organizations like ours to broaden and deepen their impact. He’s been, and will continue to be, an incredible resource for us as we grow.”
Spoonfuls keeps nearly 115,000 pounds of still-good, unsold food out of landfills each week, sourcing food from grocery stores, wholesalers, farms, and farmers’ markets, and distributing same day to a network of food programs across the state that serve people facing food insecurity. Said Stanley, she and her team expect that number to grow with Spoonfuls’ recent expansion to Southeastern Massachusetts alongside efforts aimed at improving operational efficiencies and recovering more food.
Alibhai’s marks Spoonfuls’ third board appointment this year, an intentional effort by the organization to grow its board in step with organizational growth and expansion. The organization, already New England’s largest both in terms of pounds of food recovered and partners reached through its deliveries, has been scaling its operations in response to increasing rates of food insecurity and in line with efforts by the state, such as Massachusetts’ Solid Waste Master Plain, to divert waste from landfills.
While 1 in 3 households in Massachusetts faces food insecurity (Greater Boston Food Bank), food waste is the number one material in Massachusetts’ waste stream (MassDEP). Across the United States, roughly a third of available food, equating to 237 million tons goes to waste each year (ReFED).
“What excites me about Spoonfuls is that they’re recovering high-quality excess food before it is wasted and getting it to the people who need it most,” said Alibhai. “It’s a creative solution that simultaneously improves people’s quality of life and reduces our environmental impact.”