Nourishing Tomorrow

Capital Improvements to fuel our operations, programs, services & Impact

Foodlink is embarking on phased infrastructure and capacity-building projects at a time when requests for food assistance have reached record levels. Over the next 3 years, we aim to upgrade our Mt. Read Boulevard facility, as well as our community farm on Lexington Avenue. 

These projects enable us to increase our capacity to serve, respond to the needs of our community, and build access to culturally diverse, nutritious food that reduces health disparities in the most efficient and collaborative way possible. 

Addressing Challenges

  • Today, more than 150,000 people in our region remain food insecure, according to recent reports.

  • Visits to emergency food pantries and meal programs are back on the rise. Foodlink’s network saw a 36% increase in requests for food assistance in 2024, compared to the year prior.

  • In the past 36 months, we have increased dollars spent on purchased food by 259% to keep up with the demand.

  • Foodlink’s heightened service level has led to significant wear and tear on our physical location, refrigeration, ovens, parking lots, trucks, equipment — and now threatens our ability to continue to meet the growing demand.   

Complete December data not yet available.

Project Highlights

Focus Areas: 2025-2027

Cooler Expansion

Foodlink serves as the hub of the emergency food system for hundreds of organizations (food pantries, meal programs, shelters, etc.) across a 10-county service area. After years of running refrigerated tractor-trailers in our parking lot to supplement our cold-storage space, we are investing in a new, energy-efficient commercial cooler for our food bank.

↓ The Impact ↓

The cooler will lead to a 69% increase in cold-storage space, and will efficiently store up to 420,000 pounds of perishable food at any given time. Our network of food pantries, meal programs, and Pop-up Pantry distributions — which collectively serve thousands — will see an increase in healthier foods available to their clients.

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Farm Revitalization

The Foodlink Community Farm is the largest urban farm in the Rochester region. For more than a decade, we have invested in a formerly vacant lot to create a growing space for low-income and new American community members. In the years ahead, we will install more raised beds and construct a new Edible Education Center and greenhouse.

↓ The Impact ↓

Our expansion plans will allow us to host an additional 50 families and grow roughly 5,000 additional pounds of food. A proposed 3,000-square-foot greenhouse will enable year-round growing, and a 2,800-square-foot Edible Education Center will enable us to host workshops, events, and educational programming for local schools.

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Curbside Market Growth

Foodlink's innovative mobile market has grown considerably since launching in the summer of 2013 with the goal of increasing access to healthy food in under-resourced communities. Renovations to Foodlink's Mt. Read Boulevard facility will allow the market's operating space — including loading docks and office space — to grow fourfold.

↓ The Impact ↓

The Curbside Market’s expanded operating space improves safety measures, product quality and operational efficiency. The result is more fresh food available to communities that lack access to traditional food retailers.

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Community Kitchen

The Foodlink Community Kitchen prepares more than 10,000 healthy meals and snacks every day — primarily for children in the City of Rochester. Our dedicated team cares deeply about the quality and nutritional value of our meals, and looks forward to new ovens and an expanded dry-storage area.

↓ The Impact ↓

The new ovens will increase meal quality and consistency, while the dry storage space allows our team to decrease per-unit costs of our ingredients. The end result will be an increase in the quality, quantity and type of customized meal we are able to prepare and deliver to sites across Monroe County.

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Environmental Sustainability

With support from the Conservation Innovation Grant program, Foodlink will construct an Environmental Services Area, purchase an aerobic digester and a commercial-strength chipper-shredder. We also aim to perform the site work necessary to build an effective composting space at the Farm.

↓ The Impact ↓

The digester will quickly and efficiently transform food waste into a nutrient-rich fertilizer that will not attract pests. Digester output will then be transported to the Community Farm, where it will be combined with shredded plant waste and finished into high-quality compost for the farm and surrounding neighbors.

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More Facility Upgrades

Foodlink self-funded a complete roof replacement and other critical safety measures soon after purchasing its Mt. Read facility in 2022. Future plans include exterior lighting upgrades, and enhanced safety measures for our main road and parking lots that wrap around the building.

↓ The Impact ↓

This investment will create a more secure space and walking path for the hundreds of individuals utilizing our headquarters on a daily basis, to ensure food safety, and to reduce damage to our fleet of food delivery vehicles that travel thousands of miles across our region each month.

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How to Help

You can support this work by making a donation, or reaching out to learn more. Please contact Beth Hershel, Director of Development & Community Engagement, to learn more about our progress, and/or request a tour of our facility.

Fundraising Goal: $15 million
$$$ Raised 63%

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Testimonials

Foodlink’s infrastructure is our mission. Our 130 employees, hundreds of community partners and thousands of volunteers would not be able to do the work, and fulfill our commitment to the community, without it all.
JT

Julia Tedesco

President & CEO, Foodlink

Ensuring everyone has access to nutritious, quality food is paramount, and Foodlink continues to deliver on this mission. I am honored to have played a role in both renovations at the Mt. Read facility and farm on Lexington.
Clark

Sarah Clark

NYS Assemblymember 136th District

We are honored to partner with Foodlink on this transformative project. The upgrades to the Mt. Read headquarters represent an incredible step forward in ensuring Foodlink’s mission can continue to thrive for years to come.
andrea

Andrea Convery

President, Milestone Construction

Photo Galleries

Mt. Read Boulevard

Lexington Avenue

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