Nonprofit Leadership Podcast How a Small Group of College Students Launched a National Movement
In this episode, Dr. Rob Harter sits down with Aidan Reilly, co-founder of The Farmlink Project, a nonprofit that began as a college passion project and grew into a national food recovery movement. What started in 2020 as two friends trying to make a difference during the COVID-19 pandemic quickly evolved into a logistics powerhouse that has since delivered over 350 million pounds of food—soon to be half a billion.
Aidan shares the compelling origin story of Farmlink and how a group of students bridged the gap between farms with surplus food and food banks in desperate need. With impressive agility, grassroots organizing, and a deep sense of purpose, Farmlink has scaled nationwide and is now exploring international efforts. Aidan also discusses how Farmlink is addressing food waste, hunger, and climate change simultaneously—and how their innovative model may one day make their own work unnecessary.
Key Topics Include:
- The founding of Farmlink during the pandemic by college students looking to make an impact
- How Farmlink grew from a local food rescue effort to a national nonprofit operating in 27+ states
- The logistics of moving nearly half a billion pounds of food and partnering with over 1,200 food banks and 400 farms
- The systemic causes of food waste in the U.S. and how Farmlink is creating long-term infrastructure solutions
- How Farmlink measures and communicates its climate and hunger relief impact to donors
- The role of AI, predictive analytics, and capacity mapping in scaling nonprofit operations
- Why public-private partnerships and policy advocacy are essential to solving food insecurity at scale
Mentioned in This Episode:
This Episode is Sponsored By:
Links to Resources:
- Interested in Leadership and Life Coaching? Visit Rob’s website: RobHarter.com
- Find us on YouTube: Nonprofit Leadership Podcast YouTube Channel
- Suggestions for the show? Email us at nonprofitleadershippodcast@gmail.com
- Request a sample coaching session: Email Rob at rob@robharter.com
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Summary
The conversation with Aidan Reilly from the Farm Link Project explores the organization’s journey from a student-led initiative to a national movement addressing food waste and hunger. Aidan shares insights on the importance of partnerships, innovative solutions, and the impact of their work on communities and the environment. The discussion highlights the challenges faced in scaling their efforts and the vision for a sustainable food system that eliminates waste and hunger.
Quotes
“We shouldn’t, let’s try to help.”
“We rescued 50 million apples.”
“We work with all food banks.”
Chapters
00:00 The Birth of Farm Link Project
02:54 Scaling Up: Partnerships and Systems
05:48 Connecting Farms and Food Banks
08:40 Addressing Food Waste and Consumer Preferences
11:35 Measuring Impact: Hunger Relief and Climate Outcomes
19:54 Harnessing AI for Nonprofit Scalability
22:34 Eliminating Waste and Hunger: A Guiding Philosophy
26:18 Building Infrastructure for Zero Waste
29:10 Overcoming Operational Challenges in Scaling
33:58 Strategizing for Future Growth and Impact