Before Angel Veza started her food waste and sustainability internship with ReFED eight years ago, she had experienced firsthand how waste was generated and handled in the foodservice sector. “I was working in kitchens—literally,” says Angel of her career as a chef in fine dining restaurants and with Compass Group in New York City. “It was in those kitchens, surrounded by incredible ingredients and equally incredible amounts of waste, that I had a moment of reckoning. I began to see food waste not just as a kitchen problem, but as a systems problem—one that touches climate, equity, and economic opportunity.” For Angel, that moment of reckoning shifted the course of her career. “I knew I wanted to work on food waste full-time,” she says.

Angel’s belief that food waste goes beyond the kitchen was right nearly a decade ago, and it remains true today. In 2023, 31% of the United States’ food supply went unsold or uneaten, more than 70 million tons valued at over $380 billion. That surplus food generates 4% of annual U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, including 10% of the country’s methane emissions. It is also equivalent to about 120 billion meals each year. The good news is there is a wide variety of solutions to food waste, but investing in those solutions to make them viable and scalable can be challenging. Bridging that gap between “promising solutions” and the right kind of funding is at the core of what Angel does at ReFED.

As the Director, Innovation Initiatives, Angel leads several of ReFED’s innovation programs, such as The ReFED Catalytic Grant Fund, Innovation Challenge collaborations, and other services available to help solution providers grow. And while working with businesses and capital on food waste reduction has its challenges, for Angel, these programs boil down to relationships. “Most days, I’m in conversation—with solution providers working on the ground, funders looking to make an impact, researchers diving into the data, and partners across the ecosystem,” Angel explains of her typical day. “These conversations help me stay close to the challenges and possibilities within the food waste space, and they directly inform how we support and scale innovation.”

Angel says that it starts with listening. “We aim to understand their growth stage, the barriers they’re facing—whether it’s funding, access to pilots, supply chain partnerships, or visibility—and then we help them navigate those challenges,” she explains. That help can take many forms. Sometimes it’s about being a connection point between solution providers and capital providers, and sometimes it’s about shaping the storytelling around a solution, so that it resonates with key stakeholders. Occasionally, solution providers are given the opportunity to receive direct grant funding through ReFED’s Catalytic Grant Fund.

“Solving food waste isn’t just a matter of good ideas—it’s a matter of resourcing them well, and that’s what the ReFED Catalytic Grant Fund is designed to do,” explains Angel. The Catalytic Grant Fund provides non-recoverable and recoverable grants and post-grant support to solution providers that show high-impact potential (learn more in this article). What makes it “catalytic” is its focus on offering capital that is, in Angel’s words, “flexible, risk-tolerant, and impact-first,” which is the kind of capital that is often needed to scale solutions.

Since its inception in 2022, the Catalytic Grant Fund has run three open calls, each on a specific theme, which have included Consumer Food Waste, Restaurants, and Maximizing the Harvest. “What makes it unique is how it's deeply informed by ReFED’s data, market insights, and expertise,” Angel says of what goes into deciding what those focus areas should be. “What’s been especially exciting is that we’re already seeing our theory of change come to life: for every $2 the Fund has granted, our portfolio has raised $15 in follow-on capital—a total of over $30 million and counting,” explains Angel.

As 2030 approaches, so does the UN’s Sustainability Goal to reduce food waste by 50%. For Angel, solving the food waste problem requires several major shifts. “From where I sit, I believe we need to continue aligning capital with impact—ensuring that philanthropic, public, and private funding flows more efficiently to the most promising and scalable solutions, so that they can meet the needs of waste generators.” But as she realized in those New York City kitchens years ago, it’s also about systems change. “From data transparency to policy gaps, and from misaligned incentives across the supply chain to the need for better collaboration between sectors, we need collective action to hit those targets.”

Still, her work at ReFED keeps her optimistic. “What excites me is the momentum,” she says of the growing awareness of the food waste problem. “And at ReFED, we’re working to meet that moment by continuing to be a connector, enabler, and amplifier for the field. I feel really lucky to be doing this work.” And while we still have “a long way to go,” Angel’s passion for building relationships and being a champion for those working to solve food waste keeps her going. “I’m always excited to connect with others who care about building a more sustainable and equitable food system. If you’re working on something in this space or just curious to learn more, don’t hesitate to reach out.”

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