Pennsylvania 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 the state through The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) Reach and Resiliency Grants.
The grants will be used to expand 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.
In addition to the TEFAP grants, the Governor's 2023-24 budget includes:
• $46.5 million 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.
The Shapiro Administration is committed to fighting hunger and food insecurity and increasing access to healthy food for Pennsylvanians, wherever they live.
Find The TEFAP Grant Recipients here.
Photo Credit: gettyimages-zoran-zeremski
Categories: Pennsylvania, Government & Policy