Individual Volunteer Opportunities
Ways to Volunteer
Mobile Market
These farmers’ market style distributions deliver fresh produce free of charge 18 times a month across all five boroughs. You will distribute thousands of pounds of fruits and vegetables to hundreds of families.
Time commitment: 8:30am–12:00pm (shift time subject to change); our Mobile Markets take place twice a month at each of our nine locations.
Location: All five boroughs
Minimum age requirement: 14 years old, with a chaperoneRepack
Much of the food that City Harvest procures through partnerships with farmers, wholesalers, or through local food drives arrives in large capacity containers, which can be challenging to distribute equitably. Help us take thousands of pounds of produce and repack it from large, bulk containers into smaller, family-sized units that community food programs can easily distribute to their clients.
Time commitment: Varies, 3-4 hours
Location: The Cohen Community Center Rescue Center, Sunset Park, Brooklyn
Minimum age requirement: 10 years old, with a chaperoneGreenmarket Rescue
(Seasonal)Rescue thousands of pounds of fresh, seasonal produce that would otherwise go to waste at Greenmarkets across the city. At the close of the market, volunteers collect excess food from local farmers and help load it onto City Harvest trucks, which immediately deliver the food to soup kitchens and food pantries across the city.
Time commitment: 2 hours
Location: Varies seasonally
Minimum age requirement: 11 years old, with a chaperoneNutrition Education
We invite New Yorkers with an educational, culinary, or nutrition background, or a strong interest in healthy cooking and eating, to be a part of our Nutrition Education volunteer opportunities. Our free Nutrition Education classes and cooking demonstrations mostly take place Monday–Friday during regular business hours, with occasional Saturday mornings, in schools, community centers, and supermarkets across all five boroughs. We will supply you with recipes and all of the information and materials you’ll need. All that’s required is your passion and a basic understanding of cooking.
Time commitment: Varies
Location: Varies
Minimum age requirement: 18 years oldInterpreter Support
Mandarin and Cantonese speaking volunteers are needed to support our Bed-Stuy and Queensbridge Mobile Markets. Volunteers may be asked to communicate market information with participants, help with registration, or participate in the market distribution.
Time commitment: 8:30am–12pm (subject to change)
Location: Queensbridge and Bed-Stuy Mobile Markets
Minimum age requirement: 18 years oldFood Show Rescues
New York City is home to some of the biggest food trade shows in the world. Help ensure that high-quality, specialty food doesn’t go to waste by joining a food show rescue. You will collect excess food from vendors at the end of trade shows such as the Fancy Food Show and New York Produce Show.
Time commitment: Varies
Location: Varies
Minimum age requirement: 18 years oldAdvocacy
Stay up-to-date on anti-hunger policies and help advocate for legislation and programs. Visit our Advocacy page to learn about what we’re currently following.
Agency Referral Sites
We also refer volunteers to our partner agencies that are in need of support. For these locations, there is no need to be a trained City Harvest volunteer or to attend an orientation as registration and recruitment is managed by the agency site. To sign up to volunteer, please reach out to the site contact listed on the volunteer map below to confirm attendance.
Time commitment: Varies
Location: Varies
Minimum age requirement: 18 years oldOffice Work
Put your office skills to work by joining us at our Sunset Park headquarters to help with mailings, data entry, and other administrative projects.
