City Harvest has added three electric trucks to its fleet as part of an effort to reduce diesel emissions in Hunts Point, where thousands of trucks travel through the neighborhood every day.
The food rescue nonprofit unveiled the three Volvo VNR Electric trucks Wednesday at the Fulton Fish Market Cooperative as part of the “Bronx Is Breathing: Reimagining a Cleaner Hunts Point” initiative, a collaborative project between community stakeholders, business, and environmental organizations working to reduce truck pollution and expand economic opportunities in the neighborhood.
The vehicles will support a 25% increase in the amount of food City Harvest plans to deliver to the Bronx this year, as food insecurity rises amid cuts to SNAP benefits.
“City Harvest rescues and delivers millions of pounds of food to New Yorkers in need every year. We are proud that these new electric trucks will support that crucial mission with cleaner, quieter operations,” said Keith Brandis, head of policy & regulatory affairs, North America, Volvo Group’s trucks technology & industrial division.
“The Bronx Is Breathing project shows how targeted infrastructure investment and community partnerships can accelerate the adoption of electric trucks in dense urban freight environments.”
Dubbed the “bread basket” of New York City, Hunts Point is home to one of the largest food distribution centers in the world, supplying roughly 12% of the food distributed across the city. More than 15,000 truck trips pass through the neighborhood each day, bringing food into the market and transporting it to stores and restaurants across the city.
The neighborhood’s concentration of industrial operations, combined with its location between multiple highways, has contributed to high levels of air pollution.
Hunts Point has some of the city’s highest rates of asthma and deaths linked to fine particulate matter, or PM2.5. Environmental activists in the South Bronx have been working for years to push for cleaner, electric fleets and reduce the pollution generated by the trucks traveling through the neighborhood.
The trucks will replace three diesel vehicles and be used to rescue and deliver food throughout the Bronx and across the five boroughs.
The trucks are designed to produce zero tailpipe emissions. They are also equipped with battery-electric refrigeration units, allowing both the vehicles and the equipment used to keep food cold to operate without tailpipe emissions.
“City Harvest helped start the food rescue movement more than 40 years ago, and we are excited to now bring these innovative new trucks to the streets of New York City,” said Jilly Stephens, CEO, City Harvest.
“These trucks will support our work providing as much food as possible for New Yorkers in as sustainable a way as possible, at a time of critically high need in our city,” Stephens said. “By generously providing these electric trucks, Volvo and the Bronx is Breathing initiative enable City Harvest to further our environmental impact and to better serve the Bronx and our city.”
The project also includes new charging infrastructure in Hunts Point. City Harvest will initially charge the trucks at a new charging installation at the Fulton Fish Market Cooperative. The fleet is eventually expected to use a freight-focused public charging hub being developed by MN8 Energy at the Hunts Point Food Distribution Center, which is expected to open in 2029.
The trucks are supported by a $10 million award from the New York Clean Transportation Prizes program, administered by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority in partnership with the state Department of Public Service and Department of Environmental Conservation.
“The Bronx is Breathing” team includes the Greater Hunts Point Economic Development Corporation, The Point CDC, Barretto Bay Strategies, Volvo Group North America, City Harvest, Public Works Partners, Empire Clean Cities, MN8 and Royal Waste Services.
Reach Marina Samuel at msamuel@schnepsmedia.com. For more coverage, subscribe to our newsletter and follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram!
