During the Holiday Season, Program Continues To Support Families in Need Across the State
Governor Hochul Signed Legislation in November 2021 To Codify Program into State Law
Builds on Governor Hochul’s Nearly $28 Million Investment Last Month To Support 11 Food Bank Organizations and Provide Resources for Low-Income Communities
Governor Kathy Hochul announced that the Nourish New York program has distributed 100 million meals to families across the state. The initiative, which was launched as an emergency relief program during the pandemic, connects families in need across the state with surplus agricultural products grown by New York farmers. Governor Hochul codified the program into state law in November 2021. This milestone comes amid the holiday season, reaffirming New York's commitment to providing support to those facing food insecurity across the state. This week, Governor Hochul also signed legislation A.9259/S.8690 to clarify that whole milk, two percent fat milk, and other milk products are eligible for the program.
“Over the last four years, the impact of Nourish New York has skyrocketed, distributing more than 100 million meals to those facing food insecurity while also supporting New York's farms,” Governor Hochul said. “There’s no better time to share this incredible milestone and reaffirm my commitment to providing critical support to those in need than during the holiday season, and I look forward to seeing even more New Yorkers benefit from this critical initiative in the years to come."
The Nourish New York initiative reroutes New York's surplus agricultural products to the populations who need them most through the state's food banks. The program, which was launched in May 2020 as an emergency relief program during the COVID-19 pandemic, also provided much-needed support for the food producers and farmers who lost markets due to the pandemic by allowing the state's food banks to buy agricultural products directly from New York farmers and food processors. The program provides the funding directly to the state's emergency food providers to help them buy surplus products from the state's farmers and producers and distribute them to New York consumers, many of whom were thrown into financial crisis by the COVID-19 outbreak, at drive-through food distributions, and through food box and school meal programs. In November 2021, Governor Hochul signed legislation codifying the Nourish New York program permanently in state law.
The Nourish New York program, codified in law by Governor Hochul and receiving $50 million in annual appropriations, continued this year to provide critical funding for the State's emergency food providers with support from the Department. Since the program’s launch in May 2020, a total of more than $175 million has been committed to Nourish NY. Through this multi-agency effort and nine rounds of the program, New York's food banks have purchased over 118 million pounds of New York food products, which equates to over 100 million meals distributed to families in need and positively impacting 4,472 farms and agribusinesses across the state, many of which lost markets for their products during the pandemic.
The Nourish New York program is administered by the State Department of Agriculture and Markets and the New York State Department of Health. Learn more about Nourish NY on the Department of Agriculture and Market’s website.
Governor Hochul has made combatting food insecurity and supporting New York agriculture a priority for her administration. Under Governor Kathy Hochul’s leadership, the New York State Department of Health and the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets administers several programs outside of Nourish New York that support increasing food and nutrition security across the State:
The Hunger Prevention and Nutrition Assistance Program supports a network of more than 2,600 emergency food providers who distribute healthy food and fresh produce to individuals who request assistance.
The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) serves more than 425,000 individuals through breastfeeding support, nutrition education, supplemental nutritious food benefits, and health care referrals.
The Commodity Supplemental Food Program offers free, nutritious foods to adults aged 60 and older. Approximately 36,000 older adults participate in the program monthly. During the summer, participants receive additional benefits for fresh fruits and vegetables at farmers' markets through the Senior Farmers' Market Nutrition Program, available in New York City and Long Island. The goal is to improve the health of low-income individuals at least 60 by supplementing their diets with nutritious United States Department of Agriculture foods.
The Child and Adult Care Food Program is a nutrition education and meal reimbursement program that helps providers serve nutritious and safely prepared meals and snacks to children and adults in daycare settings. The program is funded through the United States Department of Agriculture and continues New York's commitment to promote the health and well-being of its residents. All children and adults who attend childcare centers, community-based adult centers, afterschool programs, homeless shelters, and family daycare programs receive meals.
Food Access Expansion Grant Program provides $10 million to help increase food access for New Yorkers living in areas without grocery stores and without options for healthy, affordable food. It provides infrastructure funding to support the development and expansion of supermarkets, food cooperatives, permanent farm stands, and other retail food stores in underserved regions of the state while also increasing markets for New York farmers.
Regional School Food Infrastructure Grant Program, which provides $50 million over five years to support regional cooking facilities that will facilitate the use of fresh New York State farm products in meal preparation for K-12 school children.
FreshConnect Program and the FreshConnect Fresh2You program, which now doubles the buying power for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) recipients at farmers' markets across New York State. The initiative provides eligible New Yorkers with a dollar-for-dollar match of up to $50 per day at participating farmers’ markets, which allows families in need to purchase more healthy food, including produce, dairy, eggs and meats.
Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program (FMNP) promotes local producers by expanding their sales at farmers' markets and farm stands and fosters healthy communities through the consumption of locally grown foods. Eligible consumers are provided with coupons to use for fresh fruits and vegetables at the more than 700 market locations, including farmers' markets, farm stands, and mobile market stops participating in the FMNP, supplying healthy homegrown foods to communities across New York.
SNAP-Ed Funding Program, which is administered in coordination with the Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance, aims to make local produce more available and accessible to Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) eligible communities while sourcing local produce and providing nutrition education through Community Garden and Food Box programs.
Farm-to-School program connects schools with local farms and food producers to strengthen local agriculture and improve student health. The program provides financial, technical, and promotional assistance to schools, farms, distributors, and other supporting organizations to bring more local, nutritious, seasonally varied meals to New York students.
The 30 Percent New York State Initiative builds on the Farm-to-School program by increasing the reimbursement schools receive for lunches from 5.9 cents per meal to 25 cents per meal for any district that ensures their school lunches are made up of at least 30 percent eligible New York produced and processed products, providing healthier meal options for students and additional markets for farmers.
In addition, the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets administers the federally funded New York Food for New York Families program, providing nearly $50 million to partner food banks and food service organizations to implement projects that purchase New York-grown food products and distribute them to underserved communities. It also provides technical assistance to help growers sell into the New York Food for New York Families program.
On the Department of Health website, you can find more information on the Hunger Prevention and Nutrition Assistance Program, Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children, Commodity Supplemental Food Program, and the Child and Adult Care Food Program.
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