As the founder of Food Tank, Danielle Nierenberg is dedicated to empowering, nourishing, and inspiring people to build a more just and sustainable agricultural landscape. Her journey began with a defining moment in the Peace Corps, where she saw firsthand how food, farming, nutrition, and the environment are deeply intertwined. From that experience, she committed her life to amplifying the voices of farmers (especially women) who are transforming their communities through sustainable solutions.

Danielle believes that true change happens through relationships and trust, not just strategy and funding. She has spent years building bridges between farmers, policymakers, and food industry leaders, even when those conversations are difficult to navigate. Her work has taken her to global stages, from the United Nations Climate Conference to SXSW, yet she remains grounded in the communities in which she serves. Success for Danielle isn’t measured in profits but in creating a food system that is fair, nourishing, and accessible to all while regenerating the planet for future generations.

This Women’s History Month, Danielle reminds us that progress comes from listening, collaboration, and sometimes uncomfortable conversations. Whether it’s supporting women farmers or advocating for policies that uplift these female entrepreneurs, her work embodies the power of women driving meaningful and long-lasting change. Please take a moment to read more about Danielle.

In three words, describe the essence of your business.

Empowering, nourishing, and inspiring

What’s one unexpected lesson entrepreneurship has taught you?

This work has taught me to focus on connection: to one another, to the land, to the people who work it, and to the labor, resources, and diversity required to create a healthy food system. Strategy and funding are important, of course, but real change happens through relationships and building trust. Listening—really listening—to farmers, farmworkers, food workers, and communities will always be more powerful than any top-down solution.

Was there a defining moment when you knew this business was your path? Tell us about it.

When I lived in the Dominican Republic with the Peace Corps, I learned about the connection between food, farming, nutrition, and the environment. Farmers are brilliant. I wanted to devote my career to amplifying their good work and supporting a better, more nourishing food system for all.

But when I was later working at a think tank, I realized that a lot of well-intentioned environmental work is very doom and gloom, focusing more on the problems than solutions. I was seeing a lot of hope on the ground and in unexpected places—all across sub-Saharan Africa, women farmers especially were transforming their communities and local food systems. These were solutions that just needed a little more attention, research, funding, and support to be scaled up and out. That’s when I knew we needed to highlight what was working and build a platform for those innovations, ideas, and stories of hope to reach a wider audience. Food Tank was born from that inspiration.

What’s a sacrifice you made that was harder than you expected?

Time. Food Tank brings people together at forums across the world to have difficult conversations about food and agriculture, break down silos, and amplify solutions. We host programming on global stages like the U.N. Climate Conference, the Sundance Film Festival, and SXSW. It is an incredible community and I could not be more proud of our impact, but it has also meant long hours, travel, and missed moments with family and friends.

If you could go back and give your younger self one piece of advice before starting this journey, what would it be?

You don’t know it all. I grew up in a small town in Missouri as an avid environmentalist, animal lover, and vegetarian. I went into my career thinking I could save the world. I thought all farmers were the same, part of one big industry that was destroying the environment. But being in the Peace Corps taught me that there are farms of all sizes doing things in different ways, both bad and good. Those farmers who I was working with—and so many others around the world—had a lot more to teach me than I could ever teach them.

What’s something about your journey that most people don’t see or realize?

At Food Tank, we work to avoid preaching to the choir. While it feels good and can be inspiring and empowering to get together with like-minded advocates, this won’t change anything. We need to embrace being uncomfortable, having discussions with those we disagree with, and understanding that these issues are nuanced and that there is rarely one solution. 

We have gotten pushback from folks in the sustainable agriculture community about having Bayer or Tyson Foods on a panel. I understand this criticism, because it’s uncomfortable and it was hard for me at first to engage with those whose actions I disagree with, but we have to talk to them if we want to make change happen. Demonizing and creating silos will not help anything. They have a lot of money and power, and often, they are people who believe they are helping the world. 

I’ve sat at a couple of dinners with policymakers from different sides of the aisle who see each other every day but have never spoken and certainly never shared a meal. When they talk about their families or their gardens or hometowns, it’s the first step to seeing each other as humans. One of the things we all have in common is food. 

What fuels you on the tough days?

These days, it can be hard to look past the negativity and multiple crises facing our world. But I am inspired every day by communities around the world that are already leading the way in creating a better food system. Resilient, dedicated, and innovative farmers are on the frontlines of feeding the world while regenerating our soils and protecting our planet. 

I am also constantly in awe of the young people reimagining agriculture with fresh ideas, advocating for climate action, and building more just and equitable food systems. Their energy and commitment remind me that the future of food is in good hands.

What does success look like to you beyond the bottom line?

As a nonprofit organization, the bottom line has never been our measure of success. The future we are building towards is a food system that is more just, resilient, and nourishing for everyone—especially the most vulnerable. Our North Star is a world where food is fair, nourishing, and accessible to all, farmers and food workers are valued, and the environment is not only protected but regenerated for future generations.

Who has been your biggest supporter or source of inspiration along the way?

My work would be impossible without so many mentors and colleagues supporting me along the way, and most importantly, Food Tank’s incredible membership. I am inspired by the energy and passion from our community, and the farmers, ranchers, food workers, and food advocates who work every day to create a better system. My mom, Joyce Nierenberg, told me when I was a child that girls could do anything--and she was my biggest champion. I wouldn't be anyone without her. 

To name just a few of my many food heroes over the years: watching Julia Child, the only woman chef I had ever seen, as a child in Defiance, Missouri, showed me the power and importance of celebrating food. Reading Frances Moore Lappé’s Diet for a Small Planet at age 13 showed me how food production is directly connected to sustainability, democracy, and equity. And meeting women farmers across sub-Saharan Africa who are nourishing their communities with resilience and innovation, despite scarce resources, continues to inspire me.

What’s one thing people can do today to better support women-owned businesses?

Buy from women. Whether it’s food, services, or products, direct support makes a tangible difference. Invest in women, whether through your dollars, mentorship, or advocacy. And voice your support for policies that uplift women entrepreneurs. Women need not only representation in leadership positions but equal access to resources and funding as men.