Published 09/19/2023
Bethlehem, PA – Today, Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding visited New Bethany Choice Food Pantry in Bethlehem to announce awards of more than $1.6 million to 40 food banks, pantries, shelters, and soup kitchens across Pennsylvania through The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) Reach and Resiliency Grants. Today's grant awards recognize Hunger Action Month, and demonstrate the Shapiro Administration's commitment to fighting hunger and food insecurity and increasing access to healthy food for Pennsylvanians, wherever they live.
"No one should go hungry in a state with the wealth and bounty we have in Pennsylvania," Secretary Redding said. "But far too often families do not know where their next meal is coming from and they need our help. Expanding the capacity of organizations like New Bethany to supply fresh, healthy food to families in need is just one part of a broad Shapiro Administration strategy to work toward a healthier, more secure Pennsylvania."
New Bethany is receiving $23,610 to reconfigure the space in their Choice Food Pantry, allowing them to increase cold storage capacity, offer a greater variety of fresh, nutritious food, and more efficiently serve more people in need of food assistance. New Bethany offers hope and support to people experiencing poverty, hunger, and homelessness. The organization provides food, wellness programming, transitional housing, permanent affordable housing, and financial case management to those working toward self-sufficiency.
"More people than ever are relying on New Bethany's Choice Food Pantry to supplement their grocery budgets," New Bethany Executive Director Marc Rittle said. "In fact, we have nearly doubled our output of USDA food. TEFAP is essential to us in this work, as we expand our services in the Bethlehem Area."
TEFAP Reach and Resiliency Grants are being awarded to organizations distributing USDA Foods through TEFAP contracts with the state, county, or a county-designated Lead Agency. Funded projects include expanded cold storage, warehouse space and equipment, delivery vehicles for food distribution, and other investments that expand TEFAP's reach into isolated or underserved rural or low-income communities.
The department will be announcing a second round of TEFAP Reach and Resiliency Grants, with more than $2.5 million in available funding, in October 2023.
According to Feeding America's Map the Meal Gap, in 2022, more than 1.1 million Pennsylvanians, or 8.9% of everyone in the state, and 13% of our children, may not know the source of their next meal.
The Governor's 2023-24 budget includes:
$46.5 million in funding to provide universal free breakfast to all of Pennsylvania's 1.7 million public school students and free lunch to all 22,000 Pennsylvania students who are eligible for reduced-price lunches through the National School Lunch Program;
$2 million to fund the Fresh Food Financing Initiative that will contribute to better health outcomes by improving access to PA-grown, processed, and produced foods; and
$2 million increase to the State Food Purchase Program to provide state funds for emergency food assistance for low-income Pennsylvanians, connect surplus food donated by farmers through the Pennsylvania Agricultural Surplus System to food banks and food pantries statewide, and connect low-income seniors to Senior Food Boxes filled with nutritious dietary staples.
TEFAP Grant Recipients announced today include: Adams County South Central Community Action Programs – $39,492 Allegheny County Community Human Services Corporation – $50,000 Berks County 🧡 Helping Harvest – $50,000 Bradford County Child Hunger Outreach Partners – $50,000 Butler County Community Partnership – $33,000 Cambria County Interfaith Community Food Pantry – $29,252 Centre County The Food Bank of the State College Area – $40,476 Chester County Oxford Area Neighborhood Services Center Food Pantry – $50,000 Clinton County The New Love Center – $50,000 Crawford County Center for Family Services – $48,904 Cumberland County Shippensburg Produce and Outreach – $50,000 Dauphin County The Salvation Army Harrisburg Capital City Region – $50,000 🧡 Central Pennsylvania Food Bank – $50,000 Erie County 🧡 Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest Pennsylvania – $41,020 Fayette County 🧡 Fayette County Community Action Agency – $50,000 Franklin County Franklin County Government – $32,861 Indiana County 🧡 Indiana County Community Action Program – $47,918 Lackawanna County Friends of the Poor – $50,000 Lebanon County The Caring Cupboard – $50,000 Mercer County 🧡 Community Food Warehouse of Mercer County – $50,000 Mifflin County Mifflin Juniata Human Services – $32,229 Monroe County West End Pantry – $46,585 Montgomery County ACLAMO – $20,000 Family Promise Montco PA– $50,000 Manna on Main Street – $20,615 Martha's Choice Marketplace – $38,137 Mattie N. Dixon Community Cupboard – $8,000 Narberth Community Food Bank – $17,012 Northampton County New Bethany – $28,610 🧡 Second Harvest Food Bank of the Lehigh Valley and Northeast PA – $40,330 Philadelphia County Allegheny West Foundation – $50,000 🧡 🧡 Philabundance – $23,000
🧡 Share Food Program – $50,000 Small Things – $24,280 Southeast Asian Mutual Assistance Association Coalition – $50,000 The Center for Returning Citizens – $50,000 Schuylkill County Schuylkill Community Action – $50,000 York County New Hope Ministries, Spring Grove – $50,000 🧡 York County Food Bank – $50,000
Find food banks, pantries and other resources in your area, plus information on food insecurity and what you can do to help or find help at agriculture.pa.gov/foodsecurity.
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