From Excess to Access: Community-Driven Waste Solutions with Ken Baker of Rethink Food

USAID’s Kitchen Sink: A Food Loss and Waste Podcast

Over one-third of the world’s food is lost or wasted, undermining efforts to end hunger and malnutrition while contributing 8 to 10 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions. In low- and middle-income countries, over 40 percent of food loss occurs before a crop even makes it to market, whether due to inadequate storage, pests or microbes, spoilage, spillage in transport or otherwise. Eliminating food loss and waste (FLW) would provide enough food to feed two billion people, as well as reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Addressing FLW is critical to global food security, nutrition and climate change mitigation, with food rescue playing an important role in these efforts.

In order to raise awareness, exchange information and share success stories, USAID’s Food Loss and Waste Community of Practice created the USAID Kitchen Sink Food Loss and Waste Podcast. Our goal is to share monthly, bite-sized episodes that highlight the approaches USAID and the U.S. government are taking to address FLW. We hope these episodes provide a valuable resource for those interested in why we should care about FLW and how we can reduce it.

Our latest episode is with Ken Baker, Culinary Director for Rethink Food, which aims to bridge the gap between excess food and food insecure communities by preparing restaurant-quality meals from food that has been rescued from going to waste. Together, Ken and Nika share their experiences in the restaurant industry and the important decisions restaurants make to balance food waste and profits. Ken discusses how Rethink Food transforms excess into access in food insecure communities by providing nutrient dense, culturally relevant meals. We conclude with a discussion of how to shift the narrative around food waste.

You can subscribe to receive the latest episodes of USAID’s Kitchen Sink and listen to our episodes on the platform of your choice: Apple, Spotify, and more! Video recordings of the episodes are available on YouTube. Check in every month for new episodes as global experts discuss a range of issues about FLW and methane emissions - from the critical role of youth to the staggering economic costs - and learn about specific ways that USAID is tackling FLW around the world.

If you have an idea for an episode topic you’d like to see featured or if you would like to participate in an episode of USAID’s Kitchen Sink, please reach out to Nika Larian ([e-mail]).

There’s no time to waste!