25 'healthy food' groups get grants

From The New England Council (newenglandcouncil.com)

Harvard Pilgrim Health Care has awarded 25 ‘‘healthy food’’ nonprofit organizations with grants to support their programs. The Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation, which issued the grants, has awarded nearly $620,000 to groups in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts and New Hampshire.

In 2016, Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation launched the Healthy Food Fund program, and has since awarded grants totaling $4.6 million across New England. These funds support volunteer-based community food programs that bring fresh, local food to low-income families. These organizations include Gardening the Community, Healthy Acadia, New Hampshire Food Bank, and New Haven Farms.

Karen Voci, president of Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation, outlined, “Our goal for this next phase of the Harvard Pilgrim Healthy Food Fund is to mobilize the energy of local community members and corporate volunteers to grow, glean and provide more free, fresh produce for low-income families across New England, creating a movement of ‘neighbors feeding neighbors.’’’

Healthy Food Fund grants

At Haymarket, in downtown Boston.

— Photo by Daniel Brody

From the New England Council

Harvard Pilgrim Health Care recently announced its 2019 Healthy Food Fund Grant Guidelines and RFP. The grants will be awarded to 25 local nonprofit organizations throughout Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts and New Hampshire in efforts to support the growth and distribution of free produce to low-income families and older adults.

Evidence of the fund’s widespread impact is reflected in the data: since 2016, 25 organizations supported by Harvard Pilgrim’s Healthy Food Fund increased their distribution by 116 percent to nearly 1.8 million pounds of fresh produce. In the coming year, $625,000 worth of grants will be awarded to volunteer-powered food access programs that focus on people in rural, low-income, and/or communities of color.

Michael Devlin, Director of Grants & Initiatives for Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation, said, “By mobilizing the energy of local and corporate volunteers to grow, glean and distribute healthy produce for low-income families across our region, we want to create a movement of ‘neighbors feeding neighbors’ and expand the number of citizens advocating for fresh, local, healthy food equity.”