About Us

About CFR

Community Food Rescue is the coordinated food recovery network of Montgomery County, Maryland. This program enhances the good work of businesses, individuals, and organizations that already recover and redistribute perfectly good food to people experiencing hunger.

Our History

Community Food Rescue grew out of the vision of the Montgomery County Council. In 2012, inspired by a campus food recovery program organized by students at the University of Maryland, College Park, the County Council adopted and funded the Montgomery County Food Council’s action plan to create a coordinated, collaborative food recovery network called Community Food Rescue (CFR). Manna facilitated CFR for over a decade, building the network to include over 400 donors, food providers, and volunteers that rescued over 14 million pounds of food since its inception.   

In January 2026, the Community Food Rescue contract, managed by the County’s Office of Food Systems Resilience was transitioned into a series of grant programs to support the expansion and diversification of food recovery in response to an ever increasing need for food donations among the food assistance providers.   

While Manna will remain a partner in this collaborative effort, Community Food Rescue will continue under the leadership of the Montgomery County Food Council and the Office of Food Systems Resilience.   

You can read more about the history of CFR and the new direction in this County press release.

CFR Partners