Soup Kitchen and Food Pantry Best Practices Guide

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Local politicians and other leaders may be willing to “sponsor” your project with regular contributions of food or money.

Ask members of a community garden to share their produce with your program.

Ask vendors at a local farmers market to donate unsold goods and produce.

Organize a fundraising event (it can be as simple as a bake sale or as elaborate as a sit-down dinner with entertainment).

Establish a relationship with other congregations in your community and partner with them for fund raising and food drives.

Ask other groups (such as Boy Scout and Girl Scout troops, classes of school children, block associa- tions, fraternal organizations, etc.) to join in on your drive.

New York State The Hunger Prevention and Nutrition Assistance Program, or HPNAP, is administered by the New York State Department of Health and its two New York City contractors, the United Way of New York City and The Food Bank. They aim to help New Yorkers in need lead more healthy, productive and self-sufficient lives through three initiatives: increase access to safe and nutritious food, develop and provide nutrition and health education programs, and empower people to increase their independence from emergency food assistance programs. For general inquiries or to receive a HPNAP application, contact:

New York City

Food Bank For New York City c/o Minerva Delgado

The Emergency Food Assistance Program, or EFAP,

Director of Agency Resources 39 Broadway, 10th Floor New York, NY 10006 Phone: 212-566-7855 Ext. 2242 Fax: 212-566-1463 Email: mdelgado@foodbanknyc.org

United Way of New York City c/o Rosario Valenzuela Director of HPNAP 2 Park Avenue, 2nd Floor New York, NY 10016 Phone: 212-251-4120 Fax: 212-251-4128 Email: rvalenzuela@uwnyc.org

Government Resources for Food

provides funding to more than 500 soup kitchens and food pantries citywide. It is administered by the Office of Food Programs and Policy Coordination in the Human Resources Administration (HRA). While EFAP staff coordinate the distribution of non-perishable food commodities to the members as well as monitor the emergency feeding program members to ensure adherence to EFAP and agency guidelines, the food is actually delivered by The Food Bank. To apply to EFAP, an applicant must call 212-331-4600 to be prescreened and request an application. Upon receipt of a completed application packet, a review is done in order to determine the organization’s eligibility. A Borough Coordinator will then contact the program to set up an initial site survey. The entire application process takes approximately six to eight weeks. EFAP grants are determined semi-annually and awarded for a six-month cycle. These grants are given in the form of food allocations that equal the value of food that will be delivered by The Food Bank deliveries are scheduled once per month, which allows for even distribution of the allocation throughout the six-month cycle.

Applications are mailed each year in late spring and must be returned within one month. Your organization must reapply each year. The United Way and The Food Bank operate the HPNAP program differently. United Way’s HPNAP program gives a program a “line of credit” for a certain amount of money to purchase foods through one vendor selected

Soup Kitchen and Food Pantry Best Practices Guide

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