About
Access to Excess is a nonprofit food rescue based in Dayton, Ohio. Our mission is reducing food waste in our community.
Starting With What We Had
Access to Excess started in 2019 after founder Jen Burns saw how much edible food was being thrown away at a grocery store simply because it didn't sell fast enough or too much had been ordered. She started looking for ways to keep it from going to waste and realized there was still a lot of good food with nowhere to go.
That experience led to the start of Access to Excess in 2019. Without a building, warehouse, or dedicated space, food was sorted at home and our first food stands were set up wherever we could find a spot. ATE has grown a lot since then, however food is still sorted at home today.
Chuck Terry, Jen’s husband, has supported the organization in countless ways over the years. His work behind the scenes has been an important part of ATE from the very beginning.
Going Where The Food Took Us
ATE went wherever there was an opportunity to share rescued food. We set up food stands in places where people were already going, like schools, nonprofits, neighborhoods, festivals, and community events. Bringing food into familiar community spaces helps remove some of the barriers that can come with traditional food assistance.
Our relationships looked different everywhere. Some were one-time events, others happened weekly, and some lasted for years. We’re grateful for every place that made room for ATE along the way!
There was never one place or one way we shared food. It depended on what we had, how much of it there was, and where we could take it. We learned early on to let the food lead the way, and we still do!
The Soup Years
Our first hot soup stand was in March 2022, and soup quickly became a big part of ATE. We made two or three kinds using rescued food and served it to-go with bread alongside our food stands. Soup stands were held two or three times a week.
Soup stands happened all over Dayton, including local schools, the University of Dayton, Good Neighbor House, and eventually our Olive Road food stand in Trotwood. By the end of the program, we had held 138 soup stands and served more than 20,700 cups of hot soup.
We made our last batch in December 2025 but people still ask us about our soups today!
In July 2021, the Trotwood Branch Library became our first regular spot for food stands. We stayed there until December 2022, when we had outgrown the space.
In May 2023, we started using our current location on Olive Road in Trotwood. It gave us a home base while we continued sharing rescued food throughout the Dayton area.
A Place To Land
Olive Road is still our main location today but the work behind ATE still happens at Jen's house, including sorting rescued food.
Keeping Up With The Food
In the early days, we moved rescued food with our personal vehicles. As the amount of food increased, we needed more efficient ways to move it. We went from a jeep to a van and then added a trailer as the loads got bigger.
In April 2023, we bought our 16 ft box truck giving us more capacity for larger pickups. With each upgrade, we could say yes to more food!
Plans Change
In December 2023, ATE bought a building at 1670 Weaver Street in West Dayton with hopes of making it a permanent home. The building needed a lot of work and volunteers from across the community helped us clean it out.
Ultimately, our plans changed and we sold the building in January 2025. Since then, it has become the Fudge Foundation Community Center, a space that serves and brings people together in the neighborhood.
Today, we regularly bring rescued food back to this building where community groups help us unload the truck and distribute it.
Sisters In Food Rescue
In January 2024, Jen’s sister Kelly joined ATE. She was with us through June 2025, during the organization's biggest period of growth.
Kelly led fundraising efforts, rescued and distributed hundreds of thousands of pounds of food, and made a whole lot of soup. She quickly became a familiar face at ATE and is an important part of ATE's story.
The First Million
In January 2025, ATE reached 1 million pounds of food rescued since 2019!
More Of Our Story
ATE has been featured in news stories, interviews, and other media throughout the years. Take a look at some of the coverage that has helped tell our story.
The Art Of Food Rescue
There’s a lot of beauty in food that was headed for the trash. We use rescued produce to create temporary art before it continues on its way.
ATE Today
Seven years later, ATE has the capacity to rescue and move food on a much larger scale. We’ve added equipment, cold storage, and improvements to our Olive Road site to improve safety and efficiency.
We work with other organizations across the Dayton area, advocate for less food waste, and show what’s possible when we focus on the food.
And there’s still a lot more food to rescue!