Capital Area Food Bank Makes a Commitment to the Partnership For A Healthier America for Innovation in Health

Washington, DC, May 11, 2017 -- The Capital Area Food Bank (CAFB) made a three-year commitment today with the Partnership for a Healthier America to expand its groundbreaking innovation in reconnecting food to health and scaling those innovations to low income areas across greater Washington.

“Partners in the Capital Area Food Bank’s network rely on them to ensure families get the nutrition they need,” said Larry Soler, President and CEO of the Partnership for a Healthier America. “We are proud to partner with this vital organization to ensure that when our friends and neighbors find themselves vulnerable to food insecurity, the food banks and pantries they turn to provide the kind of nourishment – including fresh fruits and vegetables – that contributes to their health and wellness.”

As part of its commitment to increasing the health of those it serves, the CAFB has:

1. Increased the quality of its food supply, refusing to accept soda, candy, and other junk food;
2. Stepped up distribution of produce and multiplied its impact with recipes and produce guides;
3. Piloted school-based models that get fruits and vegetables to children when their palates are forming.

“As public health organizations, America’s food banks have a moral imperative to combat not just hunger, but their companion challenges -- obesity, heart disease and diabetes,” said Nancy E. Roman, President and CEO of the Capital Area Food Bank. “We’re simply cannot compound poverty with food inequity; in the 21^st century, food security must mean access to good food that promotes health.”

As part of a commitment announced at Partnership for A Healthier America’s Summit today, the Capital Area Food Bank agreed to:

• Pilot a grocery delivery partnership with Fresh Direct in area neighborhoods that lack access to full service grocery stores, building a bridge to affordable retail;
• Expand its school-based work to serve over 8,000 families across DC, Maryland, and Virginia;
• Pair 500,000 recipe cards, in English and Spanish, with the food it provides.

Former US Surgeon General Vivek Murthy applauded the CAFB’s work in April of this year, saying, “The innovative work that you’re doing, trying to make sure that the food is actually healthy and putting together recipes to make it easier for people to use that food—that’s creating a model that hopefully food banks all around the country can use and implement.”

As a leader in the national movement to provide access to nutritious food, the Capital Area Food Bank will be a part of PHA’s initiative to combat food insecurity and obesity with Feeding America, the San Antonio Food Bank, Atlanta Food Bank, and the Des Moines Area Religious Council.

The CAFB will host its first ever Hunger and Health Summit on Thursday, May 18^th at Pew Charitable Trust (901 E St. NW, Washington, DC), 8:30-11:30 am. The public is invited to register: https://www.capitalareafoodbank.org/health-hunger-summit/.

About the Capital Area Food Bank: The Capital Area Food Bank is the largest organization in the Washington metro area working to solve hunger and its companion problems: chronic undernutrition, heart disease and obesity. By partnering with nearly 450 community organizations in DC, Maryland and Virginia, as well as delivering food directly into hard to reach areas, the CAFB is helping 540,000 people each year get access to good, healthy food.  That’s 12 percent of our region’s mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, sisters, brothers, and grandparents. To learn more, visit: capitalareafoodbank.org, or find the Capital Area Food Bank on Facebook at facebook.com/CapitalAreaFoodBank, and Twitter at @foodbankmetrodc.

Kirsten Bourne
Capital Area Food Bank
2026449861
[email protected]