Urban Harvest Exchange
Urban Harvest Exchange is a 501c3 people-powered nonprofit organization, growing and sharing fresh, free food, without barriers.
We build garden beds, rescue surplus harvest and empower neighbors to feed each other, creating a resilient and self-sustaining community.
The vast majority of the food we distribute is freshly harvested produce. We don’t turn away less-nutritious food, we’re simply laser focused on providing fresh produce and nutritious fruits and vegetables.
Most of the food we distribute is collected by our collaborative neighbors in just a couple hours prior to distribution to the community.
Keep food out of the landfill
Reduce methane emissions
Glean from local farms and partners
Rescue produce — often 5+ tons in 3 hours
Grow food in community beds and FIG sites
Share everything 24/7 at the Tacoma Urban Farm sharing tables
Empower neighbors to grow their own food
Support long-term food sovereignty
Helping the food insecure is important — but it is secondary to the environmental mission of food rescue and the long-term community mission of mutual aid.
Our Mission:
Our History
In early 2015, as Food is Free Tacoma started as part of the Food is Free movement. We’ve since changed our name to encompass more of the community we are connected. We grew from a small backyard operation, building resources and connections with other like-minded gardeners and farmers. Today in 2025, we have multiple farmers, gleaners, backyard gardeners and as well as other nurtured sources.
Since our start, we have distributed more than 2 million pounds of food to over 70,000 neighbors. We believe this venture is expanding and we’re looking forward to the future.
In the Fall of 2025 we received our 501c3 nonprofit status. Now, every cent you donate is tax deductible.
Join us in creating a sustainable community that gives to others!
David Thompson
Founder/Executive Director
David Thompson is a community organizer, urban gardener, and food-sovereignty advocate based in Tacoma, Washington. He founded Urban Harvest Exchange after more than a decade of hands-on work growing food, rescuing produce, and supporting neighbors through mutual aid. Beginning with a simple 200-square-foot backyard garden in 2009, David began building what is now a multi-site network of raised-bed farms, Food Independence Gardens (FIG), gleaning operations, outdoor sharing tables, and community partnerships that feed thousands of people across Pierce County every year.
David’s work centers on three interconnected missions:
1) Rescue the harvest, keeping edible food out of landfills to prevent methane emissions.
2) Nourish the people, sharing food freely with no barriers, no requirements, and no stigma.
3) Empower neighbors, teaching people to grow food, share surplus, and build a stronger local food web.
Under his leadership, Urban Harvest Exchange now operates 24/7 Sharing Tables, multiple community gardens, two scrap-built greenhouses, a growing FIG network, and an active gleaning program. David is also the host of Urban Bounty, a monthly gardening and food sovereignty radio segment that helps listeners understand seasonal growing, environmental impacts, and community resilience.
Driven by lived experience, strong community values, and a deep commitment to food justice, David works daily to create a Tacoma where food is shared, waste is prevented, and neighbors take care of one another. His upcoming project, the Urban Farmers app, will connect growers with landowners to expand community-based food production across Pierce County.
David believes that food sovereignty begins at home — in backyards, gardens, alleys, sidewalks, parking strips, and anywhere food can grow. His work is rooted in the idea that when we grow food together, we grow stronger together.
