About Us

Where A Passion For Food, Community, & Transformation Converge

Feed the Mass is more than an organization; it's a movement of individuals and partners coming together to create lasting change.

Our Mission

Empower, Educate, and Serve Through Food

A Portland based 501c3 nonprofit, Feed the Mass was established by Chef Jacobsen Valentine in response to a growing rise of food insecurity in Multnomah County and personal understanding of the challenges individuals and families face in accessing nutritious meals.

With a blend of Black and Hawaiian heritage, Jacobsen recognized the stark disparities in our city - food waste at an all-time high, growing economic inequality, and a struggling education system. Driven by Christian values, Jacobsen decided to take action. He saw that the system was working against the community, and he was determined to be part of the solution.

In 2016, Feed the Mass started as an educational initiative, empowering individuals with the knowledge and skills to make healthier food choices. Today, Feed the Mass is driven by a clear mission to empower, educate, and serve. We're guided by the belief that food is a universal language that can bridge gaps and enable individuals to thrive.

EMPOWER

We empower our community with culinary education, teaching valuable skills that open doors to healthier, more fulfilling lives.

EDUCATE

Through our educational programs, we equip individuals with the knowledge they need to make informed choices about their nutrition.

SERVE

We stand in solidarity with those facing food insecurity and serve them, providing essential meals to underserved groups.

The Problem

A Growing Crisis

Food insecurity has been a growing problem throughout the pandemic across the US, in Oregon, and especially in Multnomah County. The USDA reports that 18 million US households, or 13.5% were food insecure in 2023, which is significantly higher than the 12.8% identified as food insecure in 2022. An estimated 1 in 8 Oregonians experienced food insecurity in 2023. According to data collected by the Oregon Food Bank, Multnomah County has one of the highest populations of food-insecure people in the state: nearly 93,000 individuals in 2022.

Our Solution

A Holistic Approach to Food Systems Management

Our programs exist to fight food insecurity and food waste at their source. We develop, cook and serve healthy meals to members of our community in need, utilizing excess food supply to prevent waste. We also empower Portland kids to feed themselves and others by teaching them to cook simple and inexpensive yet nutritious and delicious foods.

Our community driven, replicable programming combines the powerful perspective of a cross-cultural collaboration with the working expertise of a skilled team of local chefs and educators. We’ve come together to share great food and the story behind each dish, celebrating our own unique cultures and the collective food culture of the city with each meal.

Our holistic approach to food systems management and growing network of local collaborations has brought us to an exciting point in our ability to serve our community. As levels of food insecurity in Portland reach unprecedented heights and the funding sources that many have relied on to meet basic needs during the early stages of the pandemic disappear, the outpouring of practical and moral support from our neighbors continues to strengthen and inspire us. Our already powerful food sourcing network continues to expand, increasing the amount of ingredients we can access to create our meals. In addition to providing meals directly to individuals and families in need, we partner with a growing number of local mutual aid organizations to serve the people within their spectrum of care.

serving portland's diverse Communities since 2020

Our JOurney

Feed the Mass was born from a mission trip our founder, Jacobsen, led to San Francisco through his church more than 5 years ago. Jacobsen noticed something troubling—many of the teenagers he was working with were relying heavily on fast food. Knowing the importance of fresh, healthy food, he decided to try and show the kids a better way to eat.

As he walked the group through a tour of local markets, Jacob took the simple step of purchasing fresh produce and taught the teens how to cut fruit. Much more than just a lesson in nutrition, this decision became a moment of discovery for the kids, as they realized that healthy eating could be both accessible and enjoyable. Their growing excitement as they learned about the power of fresh food sparked something bigger—a vision for Feed the Mass that continues to guide everything we do today.

This story is at the heart of our mission: to inspire and empower people to nourish their bodies with fresh, healthy meals, and to ensure that nutritious food is a right for everyone, no matter their background or income level. We're driven by this purpose every day, working to feed the body, mind, and soul of our community.

Our first major event, a community cooking class, was a testament to the power of food to bring people together. We gathered in a small kitchen, shared stories, and learned from each other. The joy on participants' faces as they created their own meals was a moment of profound realization for us. It was clear that we were doing more than just teaching cooking; we were building a community.

Over the years, our vision has expanded, and so has our reach. From providing meals during heat waves and snowstorms to partnering with local organizations like the Boys and Girls Club of Portland, Tucker Maxon Preschool, and the Urban League, our commitment to serving our community has only grown stronger. We’ve navigated challenges, celebrated successes, and continually adapted to meet the ever-changing needs of those we serve.

Follow Our Work

Food distributions for Feed the Mass started small, preparing 150 meals a week in early May of 2020. But as the pandemic's impact deepened, the demand for our services skyrocketed. By September, we were producing 6,000 meals per week, serving families, the houseless, first responders, and children. Shortly after, we started freezing extra meals after every distribution to ensure that we always had a supply of nutritious food on hand for anyone who asked. Our efforts were a lifeline for many, and the trajectory of Feed the Mass became clearer than ever.

Here are a few of the “next steps” for Feed the Mass, and don’t forget that there are always opportunities for YOU to get involved - sign up for our newsletter to keep up!

We’re working to strengthen our community distribution network, ensuring that the meals we prep from rescued and donated food each week reach the most vulnerable populations.
Our team is wrapping up training and certification requirements so Feed the Mass can serve as a meal supplier to our local hospitals. We're so excited to bring our delicious, thoughtfully prepared meals to a new community!
Due to our rapid expansion, and serving thousands of meals weekly to Portland’s unhoused and student groups, we’re quickly outgrowing our sole current facility on NW Davis Street. A second kitchen has become a necessity for Feed the Mass, and thanks to supporters like you, we have big plans in the works to build out a new kitchen, equipped with state-of-the-art appliances and plenty of space to accommodate our growing operations.

Support Our Future

Because our work of food production & distribution is so closely tied to the state of the environment, we care deeply about making positive changes to our work to reduce the risk of biodiversity loss and pollution.

We know that the U.S. discards more than 60 million tons of food each year, generating a staggering amount of waste and increasing the problem of food insecurity for marginalized communities everywhere. Our work has always included sustainability and respect for the environment as a practice - to date, we’ve rescued more than 250,000+ lbs of food from going to waste.

There’s so much left to do, though, and our team is committed to reducing the environmental impact of our processes every day. By implementing more sustainable practices in our kitchen and distribution operations, like composting, recycling, and using eco-friendly packaging, we’ll continue to provide high-quality food to Portland’s most vulnerable without placing additional stress on the natural environment that makes our work possible.

Reducing Food Waste