About Us

Food Shift envisions a just, climate-conscious food system where
nutritious food is not wasted and reaches the people who need it most.

Why It Matters

In a region of abundance, one in four San Francisco Bay Area households face food insecurity while more than a third of all food produced in the US goes to waste, harming both people and the planet.

Food Shift creates more equitable and resilient food systems in collaboration with partners and communities by addressing the root causes of food insecurity. We believe lasting change happens when those most affected help lead the way.

Food Shift
Mission & Values

Food Shift works toward a healthy, sustainable future by reducing wasted food, nourishing our community and supporting local solutions at the intersection of food justice, climate action and community well-being. Through surplus food recovery and redistribution, we strengthen food and financial security alongside trusted community partners. Grounded in these experiences, we provide training on SB 1383 edible food recovery and justice, equity, diversity and inclusion (JEDI) to address food system challenges.

Our Team

We are a multi-racial and multi-generational team with a small and nimble 100% BIPOC staff supported by engaged community volunteers, interns, apprentices, and advisors.

We are intentional about having diverse perspectives and lived experiences represented in our work and drawing from the wisdom of our local partners.

Partners

It takes a community to reduce wasted food. We are fortunate to collaborate and exchange knowledge with a wide-range of organizations in addressing wasted food and hunger.

We value the relationships with our various community partners to build local resilience, offer mutual aid, share wisdom, meet environmental goals for reducing waste and promote health and well-being.

Frequently Asked Questions

Curious about services offered by Food Shift? Our history and other useful facts about preventing wasted food?

Contact Us

We would appreciate hearing from you! We are generally available online from Mondays to Fridays and onsite at our office in Alameda from Tuesdays through Thursdays.

Reach out to us

Voices From Our Community

As someone who’s spent a lot of time in the corporate/tech world, it’s been amazing to be able to look inside and learn the nonprofit world, particularly through the lens of Food Shift, whose mission is one that I’m personally very passionate about (Food Waste and Social Justice). I’ve been able to lend my ‘talents’ in a multitude of ways, from management, strategy, and coaching, to helping with technical projects, and to helping with the food recovery operation. That I get to contribute in all these ways (really, anything that I can help with, I try to) is especially rewarding for me.

Rizwan Dhanani

Executive-In-Residence

and Chief Technical Consultant

Food Shift is at the very forefront of exploring the links between food, community, economic empowerment, inclusion and health.

Robert Egger

Founder of DC Central Kitchen and LA Kitchen

Food Security Advisor to the Mayor of Sante Fe, NM

I have grown both professionally and personally, and I owe much of that to the amazing people I have had the privilege to collaborate with during my time at Food Shift. The support, encouragement, and continuous lessons I have learned from the most passionate people in this field allow me to leave with a wealth of information I did not know coming into this position.

Karla G.

Social Enterprise Intern

This [JEDI workshop] has been eye opening and transformative, both on a personal and organizational levels.

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Anya Deepak

Women’s Environmental Network

It’s been a pleasure to work with Food Shift towards the common goal of creating a more sustainable and equitable food system in West Contra Costa County. Yuka and the team have a breadth of knowledge in the food recovery space and deliver quality results in the form of consistent communication, thorough interactions with edible food generators and food recovery organizations, and thoughtful diversity, equity, and inclusion practices.

Reka Abraham

Program Manager

RecycleMore

I truly appreciate everyone at Food Shift, everything the org does, and most of all the careful attention to the ‘how’. This is the way we build the more beautiful world our hearts know is possible.

Jess Beebe

Waxwing Book Studio Founder

Food Shift Food Recovery Volunteer

We appreciate Food Shift’s professionalism and consistency: they show up with working vehicles with capacity for 3000 pounds when we end up with perfectly good food the stores don’t want.They navigate the busy streets by the market to safely deliver our food to nourish our neighbors with fresh produce, and keep edible food out of landfills and compost.

Sammy Freccero

Farmers’ Produce Corporation

(food donor to Food Shift)

Thanks to Food Shift, Gold Bear is fully compliant with SB 1383: They make sure that if we have surplus, it gets delivered to people in need so we don’t have to figure out who to give it to.

David Nuñez

Gold Bear

(food donor to Food Shift)

At RecycleSmart, we value Food Shift's collaboration and insights from their firsthand experience with food recovery organizations and donors. Their expertise has been key to reducing waste and ensuring SB 1383 compliance, and we’re proud to have partnered with them twice to drive sustainable change.

Ashley Louisiana

Program Manager

RecycleSmart

The City of Antioch was excited to partner with Food Shift after hearing about their excellent consulting work related to SB 1383. We value their unique experience as a food recovery organization in helping our businesses navigate compliance and maximize food recovery. Working with Food Shift has been a great experience, especially their ongoing support in driving meaningful change."

Julie Haas-Wajdowicz

Environmental Resources Coordinator

City of Antioch

I’ve been actively involved with Food Shift for nearly a decade because I believe in their unique work at the hyperlocal intersection of food justice and climate action. They don’t just talk about food system change—they make it happen through mutual aid, tangible community impact, and a scrappy resilience. By staying true to their core values of justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion, they take the harder path—the one that truly uplifts people, strengthens local food systems, and creates real solutions.

Lia Turk

Food Shift Advisor & Volunteer

Among the hundreds of proposals we received, your organization stood out as one that will offer social and environmental change.

Carrie Walle

Program Manager

Clif Family Foundation

It takes even greater commitment, creativity and talent to continue this work in this changed world. The reach and variety of Food Shift’s impact is astonishing. RHE Charitable Foundation admires and encourages your perseverance. We have deep confidence that you are sustaining part of a more compassionate, informed and socially-just future. Your work connects and reconnects our multifarious stories, heart-break and passionately-held aspirations for an equitable, safe and sustainable food-system.

Jennifer Sousae

Executive Director

RHE Charitable Foundation

Food Shift takes the worry out of SB 1383 implementation and helped curate a thoughtful and effective food rescue program in Pittsburg. The wonderful people at Food Shift are committed to understanding all stakeholders’ needs and adjusting processes to ensure learning and success, all while committed to their mission of nourishing our neighbors.

Sara Bellafronte

Assistant to the City Manager

City of Pittsburg

I appreciate how the workshop approached the heaviness of the topic with hope, preparation, and forward-thinking. Kudos to the Food Shift Team for being leaders in this space.

Benita Brisco

Director of Development

Catalyst Kitchens

Food Shift has helped the City’s SB 1383 compliance program blossom through outreach and education, inspections, and new ideas. One big “win” for the program was Food Shift’s success in working with a local public school district to reduce edible food waste and further educate school district staff on SB 1383, an effort and partnership not common between local jurisdictions and school districts. Food Shift is more than just a group of people doing a job. They are a group of people that truly care about the positive changes they can help bring about.

Ken Strelo

Community Development Director

City of Oakley

I can’t say I’ve attended anything quite like it: insightful, practical and wise. It’s already given me some new language and ways of framing some of the issues I’ve observed to be a more insightful researcher.

Kirsten Moy

Aspen Institute Fellow (retired)

It is a powerful educational resource for those committed to creating inclusive work spaces. Yuka is an amazing teacher and I highly recommend it!

Olivia Maki

Bio-Logical Capital

I have been totally swimming in the dark, even though I am in a network with people of color. This meeting got to the heart of the challenges I’m facing with attracting POC [people of color] board members. By developing and adopting a different lens Yuka suggested, I was able to identify key sources for revitalizing my board in a way that reflected the diversity we need for our mission. Within a day of speaking with her, we were able to welcome a POC board member!

Elizabeth Dougherty Ph.D.

Executive Director

Wholly H2O

Everyone who is part of Food Shift genuinely wants to see you succeed in whatever you do and the team is always happy to teach you about problems you may encounter. Because of my time with Food Shift I know what I bring to my next job.

Kat L.

Social Enterprise Intern

(About The Food Shift Kitchen Companion)

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Thank you for sharing this wonderful Food Shift companion! I love this so much—it’s rare to find a recipe book that is so inclusive and accessible (not to mention so full of heart and personal history!). Love all the helpful tips too—I’m definitely going to make food scrap veggie broth and mushroom bacon soon.

Nikki Lowy

Director of City & Community Outreach & Programming

Northeastern University Mills College Campus

One of the most valuable lessons I’ve learned at Food Shift is what it feels like to be a respected part of a team that is constantly uplifting and strengthening each other. Everyone’s unique skills and interests are taken into consideration.

Emma Z.

Social Entrprise Intern

Food Shift was one of my favorite jobs ever! I learned so many new things like how to separate food when throwing it away, making pasta from scratch, how to lift heavy boxes correctly, learning how to do math and formulas on a spreadsheet (never knew you could do that!), sending receipts to food donors, learning the rules of the road, and meeting very helpful people. Getting to help people in the community who may not have access to fresh produce was really the highlight. I wish my internship could’ve gone longer but I’m thankful for the experiences and opportunities I had. The Food Shift Team was very welcoming and friendly and I doubt I’ll ever find another team that cares and loves like Food Shift does!

Cianna B.

Food Recovery Apprentice

Food Shift leads with the people they serve. The team and its community chooses what’s just. The work is not meant to be easy, yet we are united together to travel the path with joy. That’s why I’ve increased my monthly contribution by 50%.

Anthony Tansimore

Food Shift Advisory Board Member

Core Team Members

Yuka Nagashima

Yuka Nagashima

she/they

Executive Director

With 20+ years of experience as a senior executive, Yuka possesses skills from several domains that are rarely found in the same person: Justice, equity, diversity and inclusion (JEDI); nonprofit leadership; organizational management; policy/government; innovation strategy; entrepreneurship; and education.

Robert Mills

Robert Mills

he/him

Food Recovery Manager

As the key staff member of Food Shift’s food recovery operation, Robert is responsible for representing Food Shift’s orders and coordinating the food recovery pick up with our partner organizations: selecting the appropriate foods, loading and transporting them back to Food Shift Kitchen for weighing, redistribution, and processing.

Stephanie Rios

Stephanie Rios

she/her

Special Projects Manager

Stephanie is a dedicated scholar with a passion for psychology and community service, she holds a B.A. in Psychology from Sacramento State University and an A.A. in Psychology from San Joaquin Delta College.

Jenny Cheng

Jenny Cheng

she/her

Sustainability Project Associate

Jenny grew up in Oakland’s Chinatown and, inspired by the disparities she witnessed, now brings her public health experience and community-centered approach to Food Shift, reducing wasted food, supporting equity in food access, and connecting with community members.