How the ReFED Catalytic Grant Fund is Maximizing Every Dollar for Food Waste Solutions

By Angel Veza, Senior Manager, Innovation Initiatives

At ReFED, we talk a lot about the importance of catalytic funding to scale food waste solutions. For those unfamiliar, catalytic funding is capital that is patient, risk-tolerant, and flexible, designed to create additional impact.

That’s why we launched the ReFED Catalytic Grant Fund, a regranting initiative to accelerate the development and implementation of high-impact solutions that reduce food waste and greenhouse gas emissions. We focus on opportunities to unlock additional capital and impact by providing non-recoverable and recoverable grants and wraparound support to nonprofits and for-profits.

The Grant Fund is continuously raising capital, which it deploys through an ongoing series of open call cycles toward specific, priority food waste themes where grant funding and innovation is most needed.

Since 2022, the Grant Fund has established a portfolio of 16 grantees and distributed $2.1 million in recoverable and non-recoverable grants that has unlocked an additional $28.1 million in funding toward the solutions, demonstrating the multiplier effect of catalytic capital.

Impact Stories

Food Cycle Science

Food Cycle Science (FCS) is an appliance company that offers solutions to break down organic waste into a nutrient-rich byproduct that can be added to gardens or compost systems. With grant funding from the Grant Fund, Food Cycle Science has expanded its service to the U.S. market, with pilots underway in Long Island and Rye, NY, Alpharetta, GA, and Easton, CT. The company has also distributed over 600 FoodCycler units across King County in Washington State. In addition, FCS launched a brand new rental model program with Casella, a waste management company based in Vermont that operates across the northeast. After a successful pilot in Mansfield, CT, FCS and Casella improved the program and are rolling it out across all of Vermont, providing residents the chance to rent a FoodCycler and divert their waste from landfills. Due in part to the impact and expansion unlocked by ReFED’s financial support, FCS was able to secure additional funding from investors like Power Sustainable Lios, which invests $25 million to $50 million per opportunity.

Food Shift

Food Shift develops practical solutions to reduce food waste, nourish communities, and provide jobs, with a focus on rescuing surplus food that would otherwise go to waste. ReFED provided Food Shift with grant funding to support the development of its Kitchen Guide, a resource to help marginalized populations reduce food waste. It includes tips for proper storage, “roots to shoots” cooking methods, appendices that decode “Best By/Sell By” dates, recipes featuring ingredients readily available from food banks and pantries, and budgetary and environmental impacts of wasted food. The rich content in the Guide demonstrated Food Shift’s knowledge and expertise, attracting the attention of multiple government agencies that are now using Food Shift’s resources in their campaigns. Moreover, the Guide enabled Food Shift to secure several multi-year contracts with cities across California to support compliance with SB1383, a California mandate designed to reduce emissions of short-lived climate pollutants (like methane) while improving the health of communities and creating clean jobs. Not only did ReFED’s support help Food Shift expand its reach, but it also helped them earn revenue—more than tripling the impact of the grant funding.

Afterlife Ag

Afterlife Ag is one of the Grant Fund’s recent grantees. They offer a circular solution for restaurants to divert food waste from landfills and then purchase mushrooms that are grown from the waste. Their model has demonstrated customer retention and enabled restaurants to improve forecasting. ReFED provided Afterlife Ag with grant funding about five months ago, and in that short time, ReFED has helped Afterlife Ag secure additional funding from a family foundation, get featured in AgFunderNews, and set up a pilot with a new restaurant in New York City. This non-financial, wraparound support helped Afterlife Ag win the Earthshot Innovation Challenge Award. The company will receive $100,000 in grant funding to accelerate the development and scale of their work to upcycle food waste to build local, sustainable mushroom farming in New York City.

Get Involved

Building off the successes of the last two open calls, ReFED is preparing to launch its next one later this year. This work is only possible thanks to the funders who are ready to make an impact on food waste, and our collaborators who provide grantees with the opportunities and exposure they need to grow. We’re always looking for new partners to join in this important work. If you’re interested in working with ReFED’s Catalytic Grant Fund, contact Angel Veza at [email protected].