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A bunch of fresh carrots with leafy tops beside daisies on a white table

Connecting Food and Transportation Surpluses and Shortages Caused by COVID-19

Past Event

Wednesday, April 15, 2020

Supply chains have yet to catch up to demand caused by the pandemic. This has left food rotting in fields and trucks parked in lots while retailers and food recovery organizations struggle to keep up with record demand. Join us as we discuss ways to get food to the people who need it.

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Panelists

  • Barbara Bronstein

    Founder, President and Volunteer, Second Servings of Houston

  • Sueli Shaw

    Social Impact Manager, DoorDash

  • Tim York

    President, Markon Cooperative

Key Takeaways

USE IDLE ASSETS

Many organizations have stopped operations by choice or by law; that could mean they have idle assets like trucks, refrigerators, and kitchens available for use. Think about what you need and think outside the box about who may have it. Barbara, for example, is using idle trucks and drivers from a party tent rental company and municipalities.

SIMPLIFY

Our work in these chaotic times can be made easier by simplifying what we do. SKU rationalization — reducing the number of products you carry — is a great place to start. Tim also highlighted that simplified rules, from produce specifications to federal regulations, have already helped turn food surpluses into viable supplies.

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Barbara Bronstein

Barbara Bronstein

Founder, President and Volunteer, Second Servings of Houston

New York-native Barbara Bronstein has resided in Houston for more than 30 years. After graduating from Tufts University, she earned an MBA in Marketing from New York University. Following a successful career marketing some of America's leading brands for Unilever, Mars and Coca-Cola, Barbara founded Second Servings to address the staggering rates of food insecurity and food waste in Houston. Under her pro bono leadership, Second Servings has become one of the city’s fastest-growing nonprofits, helping nourish over 170,000 needy Houstonians with high-quality food all year long. Barbara has been featured in local and national media and honored with the Mayor’s Proud Partner Award, the Houston Humanitarian Award and the Compassionate Action Leader Award. Currently, she serves on the Board of the Houston Culinary Guild.
Sueli Shaw

Sueli Shaw

Social Impact Manager, DoorDash

Sueli leads social impact programs at DoorDash, the leading e-commerce platform for food delivery. In her role, she develops programs that drive social change by leveraging DoorDash’s logistics platform and merchant marketplace. Prior to joining DoorDash, Sueli worked at Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors. She’s based in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Tim York

Tim York

President, Markon Cooperative

​​​​​​​Tim York started working in the produce industry over 35 years ago at H. Hall & Company, a grower/shipper of strawberries and mixed vegetables. In addition to being a founding employee and the current President of Markon, Tim also has held numerous committee and task force positions, including Member, USDA Fruit and Vegetable Industry Advisory Council; Chairman of the Produce Marketing Association (2002); Director of the PMA; Chairman of PMA’s Foodservice Division; Chairman, Center for Produce Safety Advisory Board; and is a founding member of the Stewardship Index for Specialty Crops. Now that Tim and his wife have seen their youngest off to college, he is enjoying the extra time he has to spend with his new grandson.

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