In 2020, roughly six million women, infants, and children eligible for WIC were not participating in the program. Now, the WIC Community Innovation and Outreach Project (WIC CIAO) is looking for innovative ways to say “hello” to new participants. Funded by a $44 million USDA grant to the Food Research…
Food Bank News
It’s fair to say that most food bank CEOs reach their positions after working at other food banks or non-profit social service organizations. But some CEOs have taken other, more circuitous routes to the top spot. A handful have spent years in the U.S. military (see chart). Other unusual pathways…
The level of food insecurity among seniors has barely budged in recent years, giving greater motivation to food banks that are making targeted efforts to serve this population. Out of the 78 million people in the U.S. who are 60 or older, 5.5 million of them were food insecure in…
A hunger relief organization in Des Moines, Iowa, is helping to pioneer a new method of fundraising developed by a tech startup. In April, Eat Greater Des Moines held an online auction of certificates representing food rescue and hunger relief actions it had taken in the recent past. The certificates,…
At first glance, there does not seem to be a lot of connection between food insecurity and poetry. Food insecurity is a practical problem that demands practical solutions, be they charitable food distributions or funding from state and federal governments. Within that paradigm, the role of poetry may not be…
For people who live in neighborhoods where supermarkets are scarce, finding food is often more problematic than having money for food. A growing number of food banks are addressing this issue by moving into a new model of food banking. In addition to distributing free food via pantries, they are…
Three years ago, Ashley Tyrner (pictured above) persuaded a single health plan provider to allow her company, FarmboxRx, to provide the plan’s members with boxes of produce as a way to proactively improve their overall health. Today, FarmboxRx is a $35 million company partnering with 87 health plans to deliver…
In 2019, when Food Bank News first reported on Feeding America’s MealConnect, the app was being used by 22 food banks and had helped rescue 1.5 billion pounds of food over five years. Now, virtually all of Feeding America’s 200 food banks are using the app, and it helped rescue…
Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana has joined the growing number of food banks that are lifting pay, ensuring everyone in the organization is earning a living wage. Gleaners announced in May that it has been certified as providing a minimum starting wage of at least $18 an hour, the designated…