Robert Egger Founder and CEO of LA Kitchen

Everyday in America, an estimated 40% of the food we produce is discarded; 50% of that waste is nutritious fruits and vegetables. In 2015, L.A. Kitchen moved into its new 20,000 sq. ft kitchen facility where we work directly with farmers and wholesale companies to collect fruits and vegetables that are cosmetically unsalable. All donations and purchases will be gathered at L.A. Kitchen’s food processing hub, where staff and volunteers will use it to make healthy meals, snacks, and food products for social services agencies across Los Angeles, or process and freeze it for distribution at a later date. During the first year of operating in this new facility, L.A. Kitchen expects to reclaim 1,000,000 pounds of produce.

Robert Egger is the pioneering social entrepreneur who founded the D.C. Central Kitchen, The Campus Kitchen Project and now, the L.A. Kitchen. He has helped over 100 cities open similar kitchens, and the businesses he founded have made payroll, without fail, for 30 years.