Capital Area Food Bank

Low-income Families Eat Healthily?

Chris von Spiegelfeld — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 14:54:35 +0000

Bickering over SNAP limits on junk food might prove to be an exercise in futility if new findings from Cooking Matters are accurate. According to a recently released report, low-income families are more often than not preparing meals from scratch and avoiding takeout options altogether.

Cooking Matters, a program sponsored by Share our Strength that teaches healthy eating on a budget to families at risk, published It’s Dinnertime: A Report on Low-Income Families’ Efforts to Plan, Shop for, and Cook Healthy Meals which debunks many assumptions about the dining habits of low-income families. The report is encouraging for nutrition educators and SNAP advocates alike as it demonstrates that families on tight budgets want to eat healthily and look for meal preparedness tips.

Well, if low-income folks aren’t regularly using their EBT cards to shovel in Big Bufords at the local Checkers then what are they doing? Of those sampled, “78% of families report eating at home most or every day (i.e., five or more times a week), and 2/3 of families report eating together most of every day.”

The report also goes into detail about perceived barriers to healthy eating. For example, those sticker shocked by the cost of fresh produce tend to underestimate the nutritional benefits in canned or frozen fruit and vegetables which are much more affordable.

The bottom line suggests the demand for healthy eating among low-income families is great and attainable. It comes down to education. By empowering people with nutrition education and tips for meal preparation, families will likely choose options that provide the best nourishment possible.

Rounding Up Hunger in February

Lynn Brantley — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 21:37:00 +0000

Through its annual Round Up Hunger campaign, Safeway is once again proving that a little change can go a long way toward helping those in need. This is how the campaign works. When Safeway customers throughout the Washington metro area are checking out at the cash register, they will be able to round up their grocery bills to the nearest dollar amount, with the change automatically donated to the Capital Area Food Bank. Last year, the food bank received $86,000 in donations and we are hoping that this year’s campaign will be even more successful.

So, during your next visit to a Safeway in your neighborhood, please take advantage of this unique opportunity to Round Up Hunger and help someone in need. Thank you, Safeway, for making a big difference in the lives of our neighbors facing hunger.

Fresh Food For All

Dylan Menguy — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 21:20:26 +0000

Picture this—you’re lining up at the local food pantry’s weekly grocery distribution expecting to get a bag filled with dried macaroni, peanut butter and canned tuna. To your excitement, the bag you receive is filled with fresh produce—plump and fragrant tomatoes, bright orange carrots and crisp lettuce. What’s more, you find out that in addition to being fresh and delicious, these vegetables were grown without the use of pesticides and other harmful chemicals on a farm just beyond the District lines in suburban Maryland. This kind of experience is part of the magic of the From the Ground Up Fresh Produce Grant which is run by the Capital Area Food Bank’s Healthy Eating Department.

Here at the food bank, the New Year marks a new season of the fresh produce grant program. In 2012, many of our partner agencies will apply for one of about ten spots in the program and will allow the organizations to receive produce biweekly from Clagett Farm in Upper Marlboro, Maryland. Partner agencies will be selected based on a number of criteria, specifically their capacity to pick up, store and distribute the produce granted to them. The program’s development over the years has allowed the grant’s scope to widen to include distribution of produce sourced from Waterpenny Farm in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley and from the Parkside Farmers Market right here in Washington, D.C.

You may be asking yourself, “What good would all of this fantastic produce be without knowledge on how to best use it?” This is why the Healthy Eating department devotes a lot of time and resources to developing educational programs for clients and capacity building workshops for partners to ensure that the link between fresh produce and health is very clear. One of our departmental goals is to ensure that hunger is alleviated with healthy food and knowledge on how to use this food to its full potential.

Top Shelf Training Offered in February and March

David Poms — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 15:00:49 +0000

The Capital Area Food Bank is gearing up to offer the Top Shelf training program to partner agencies in February and March. The goal of Top Shelf is to provide organizations with the resources to increase capacity, serve more clients, and sustain emergency feeding programs.

Seven workshops provide solid foundations for feeding programs to improve their operations. Upon completion of the training, organizations will become Top Shelf certified, giving them increased knowledge and skills with relevant and immediate application to programming, as well as access to special grants and programs offered by the food bank.

Top Shelf is the result of extensive collaboration between the Capital Area Food Bank partner agencies, and local nonprofit leaders from across the greater Washington metropolitan area. These seven workshops – on finances, program evaluation, volunteer management, food distribution, nutrition, safe food handling, and wrap around services –focus on best practices for emergency feeding programs. By collaborating with professionals, Top Shelf will increase the capacity of CAFB partner network to feed the hungry through education and expanded adoption of best practices.

Partner agencies that are interested in participating in Top Shelf should go to our Top Shelf page to learn more and register for classes. The deadline for registration for CAFB partner agencies who want to participate in all seven workshops is February 2nd. To find out more information, contact David Poms at aaa@capitalareafoodbank.org or call 202-526-5344 x294.

Food Stamps Are So 2008

Chris von Spiegelfeld — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 15:21:07 +0000

Evidently, some presidential candidates need to update their lexicon. Even though the federal Food Stamp program changed its name to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in 2008, the program is still referred to by its old moniker by a lot of folks, one of whom recently referred to President Obama as the “Food Stamp President.” We’re sympathetic. It hasn’t been the smoothest brand transition. Even some state agencies still refer to SNAP as Food Stamps.

Nonetheless, the hyperbole over Food Stamps, er SNAP benefits, has reached epic proportions in recent weeks. Thus when asked, we feel compelled to set the record straight and dispel some SNAP misconceptions.

When Capital Area Food Bank President Lynn Brantley was questioned by NPR regarding increases in Food Stamp recipients, she explained some of the complexities.

The result of the increase in those applying for Food Stamps is not Obama wanting to make it happen. But it’s the need that’s happening out here in the community because of lost jobs, lost wages, and welfare reform.

Also, our SNAP Outreach Coordinator Amy Menzel, went into great detail with Patch over popular myths that have created barriers to SNAP participation and thrust SNAP in a negative light.

On possible deportation:

Immigrants will not be penalized for applying for SNAP benefits. Most adults are eligible if they are legal permanent residents of the U.S. for five years or U.S. citizens. However, often their children are eligible if their parents are not.

On fraud:

Not the case at all. SNAP’s accuracy rate is 96 percent… Fraudulent use in the community has dropped to one cent on the dollar.

At the food bank, we certainly welcome discourse to promote issues of hunger as well as solutions. However, negative rhetoric regarding food assistance is often disparaging to people who receive it. Furthermore, political subterfuge impacts our ability to inform hungry people that assistance is even available.

We encourage you to learn more about the SNAP program and its recipients through these interviews or through our outreach work.

Whole Foods Market Championing Hunger

Molly McGlinchy — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 22:47:27 +0000

As we gear up for Blue Jeans Ball in a few months, we cannot help but acknowledge sponsors that make this great event possible. See the full listing here.

However, our Boot-Cut sponsor, Whole Foods Market, has not only generously provided for the occasion, but they continue to fight hunger with us on a consistent basis.

Just in the past year, Whole Foods Market has:

Sponsored Blue Jeans Ball as a $50,000 Couture sponsor,
Sponsored Empty Bowls with a $10,000 donation,
Regularly donated fresh produce from local warehouses ,
Provided weekly donations from its P Street store in Washington, DC,
And in December, the Old Town Alexandria, VA store raised over $51,000 in food purchases through Grab-&-Give bags which will soon be redistributed to neighbors in need.

As we face a great need in the region, we are honored to have Whole Food Markets partner with us in closing the meal gap. Their extraordinary efforts in 2011 and continuing into 2012 demonstrates a valuable community partnership that helps us as we expand our reach within the Washington metropolitan area.

And on the eve of receiving Old Town’s Grab-&-Give donation, we’re happy to have Ken Meyer, President of Whole Food Market Mid-Atlantic Region share similar sentiments with us:

It is with distinct pleasure and honor that Whole Foods Market Mid-Atlantic makes a contribution to Capital Area Food Bank. In 1980, both Whole Foods Market and Capital Area Food Bank set out with a mission and goal that rang and still rings true to their core values. We are proud to be aligned with an organization with a bolstering soul that resonates in the community and acts as a quality resource to the Washington Metropolitan area. We believe passionately in supporting the communities we serve and organizations that align with our enthusiastic spirit and principles. With our sponsorship of the 2012 Blue Jeans Ball, we look forward to continuing our long-lasting commitment and prosperous relationship with the Capital Area Food Bank.

Bringing In Birds with Benefits

Daniel Nat-Davies — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 14:45:11 +0000

A group of seniors from Avondale and Manor locations received a double treat at their recent visit to the Capital Area Food Bank the day before Thanksgiving. Not only did they receive special food baskets containing a turkey breast and other delicious food, they were surprised to meet President Obama and his entire family who were volunteering that day at the warehouse. The seniors were thrilled by this double treat and some, even, wept.

Those of you who donated to our annual Bringing in the Birds with Bucks Thanksgiving campaign helped us raise $64,000, exceeding our goal by $10,000 and making this day so special.

Thanks to your donations, we prepared special Thanksgiving food bags for our more than 3,300 regular brown bag recipients. The bags included: a frozen turkey breast, cake mix, corn muffin mix, macaroni and cheese, Stove Top stuffing mix, green beans, whole kernel corn, and tropical fruit in light syrup.

Our seniors were excited about the holiday baskets and we want to say a big thank you to all of you for helping us put smiles on the faces of our seniors at such a wonderful time of the year.
Ms. Blanca Ocasio and Mr. Gaylord Tissueboo express their happiness with their brown bags and the opportunity to meet the President.

Thank you again for your wonderful support of our Bringing in the Birds with Bucks campaign and making Thanksgiving so memorable for our seniors.

Heeding the Words of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Shamia Holloway — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 14:22:25 +0000

The staff of the Capital Area Food Bank recently held a celebration honoring Martin Luther King, Jr. and commemorating the food bank’s 32 years of service. Founded on MLK Jr.’s birthday, the food bank’s work is guided by his words. Dr. King’s words speak to an interdependent and interconnected world. “We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly affects all indirectly.”

His words continue to call us to do right.

As the staff gathered in the food bank’s conference room, many shared their experiences working at the food bank. A new member of the CAFB family, Roxann Seals, offered the following sentiments:

“On December 12, 2011, I became the 100^th member of the CAFB. In my short time here I have been welcomed and made to feel a part of the CAFB family!

With the expansion of the food bank, I have the opportunity to be a part of history. I have a passion for life and moving forward; I am so very pleased to be part of the team that is moving the food bank forward to its rightful place as the premier food bank in the country!”

So heeding Dr. King’s word, we here at the food bank recognize the overwhelming suffering that people in our community face today and dedicate our energies to ensuring that all may eat and be a part of this grand family called the United States of America.

CAFB Commemorates 32nd Anniversary on MLK Jr.’s Birthday

Lynn Brantley — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 17:38:36 +0000

Thirty-two years ago on Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday – January 15 – the Capital Area Food Bank opened its doors in response to an immediate need in the Washington metro area. The idea for the food bank was conceived a year earlier by the Interfaith Conference and the United Planning Organization in response to spiraling interest rates and a lackluster economy. At the same time, the federal government began cutting back its food stamp program. As the food bank’s founders, we firmly believed that hunger relief provided by the food bank would be temporary.

Today, the need for the Capital Area Food Bank is greater than ever. Hunger in the region has increased by over 25 percent and is persistent. It’s an absolute tragedy that what started as a temporary relief effort has become a community institution.

In 1980, we were determined to strengthen and expand the network of community-based social service agencies that provided food and assistance to the needy. The answer was a region-wide food bank that would have the ability to collect, store and distribute items. Last year, the CAFB distributed 30 million pounds of food, including 15 million pounds of fresh produce, through over 700 partner agencies located throughout the Washington metro region.

As we face another dramatic increase in hunger Annie Gowen reminds in a recent Washington Post article, “About two-thirds of the public now believes there are strong conflicts between the rich and poor in America, making class a likelier source of tension than traditional flash points of race or nationality, a study from the Pew Research Center found.”

In response to this critical situation, the Capital Area Food Bank began construction on a new $37 million distribution center in January of 2011 that will enable us to double our current storage and distribution capacity over time. When the new facility is complete this June, the Capital Area Food Bank will relocate to Puerto Rico Ave., NE – a short walk from our current warehouse on Taylor Street, NE.

A bigger facility means that we can distribute a higher quantity and quality of food. It also means that our nutrition education and outreach programs, which address the root causes of hunger, can be expanded. Our new warehouse space will be a large as two football fields, twice the size of our current space. This means we can eventually accept and distribute twice as much food to our neighbors.

Features and fixtures such as motion sensor lights, low-flow faucets, and solar panels – donated by BP – mean over $70,000 in energy cost savings per year – savings that leave us with more resources to help our neighbors.

Many of our 700 partner agencies are very small nonprofit groups with few resources available to develop their own capacities to serve clients. Our new Technology and Resource Center will house stations where agencies can place online food orders and apply for grants via the web.

With room to grow our base of volunteers – currently over 14,000 – we can provide them with special stations for sorting food. They can place rice, beans and other nutritious bulk items into small containers for easy client access.

New space will be provided for classrooms, along with commercial and teaching kitchens. The Kids Cafe program can provide a greater variety of after-school meals and snacks. More seniors will receive much needed food through the Brown Bag Program.

We are grateful for the opportunity of providing an essential community service to the Washington metro area for the past 32 years. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and his words have always inspired me. Now, more than ever, they guide us and our mission, “True compassion is more than flinging a coin to a beggar; it is not haphazard and superficial. It comes to see that an edifice which produces beggars needs restructuring.”

Volunteers Needed

Shamia Holloway — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 19:03:54 +0000

The Capital Area Food Bank is currently in need of volunteers for this Friday, January 6 from 1 – 4 pm; and Saturday, January 7 from 9 – 12 am. We are looking for individuals or large groups to help pack bags for our Kids Cafe and Weekend Bag Programs.

If you are still on vacation or just looking for a way to get involved in the community, please click here for more information.

The food bank always needs volunteers. So the next time your school, organization, businesss or church is looking for a community service activity, stop by the food bank and donate your time.