Maryland Food Bank Inc

THE MARYLAND FOOD BANK IS A NONPROFIT HUNGER-RELIEF ORGANIZATION DEDICATED TO FEEDING PEOPLE, STRENGTHENING COMMUNITIES, AND ENDING HUNGER FOR MORE MARYLANDERS.THE MARYLAND FOOD BANK HAS RECEIVED SUBSTANTIAL FINANCIAL SUPPORT FROM BOTH PRIVATE AND PUBLIC SOURCES IN RESPONSE TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC. IN FISCAL YEAR 2022 OUR EXPANDED SIZE AND SCOPE BEGAN TO NORMALIZE AND REVENUES DROPPED AS FEDERAL AND PRIVATE PANDEMIC RELIEF FUNDING SLOWED. YOU CAN READ MORE ABOUT OUR PROGRAM SERVICES IN THE NARRATIVE SUPPORTING FORM 990 PART III LINE 4A.

THE MARYLAND FOOD BANK (MFB) PROVIDES FOOD ASSISTANCE TO INDIVIDUALS AND FAMILIES IN NEED THROUGH A STATEWIDE NETWORK OF COMMUNITY PARTNERS, FROM THE WESTERN MOUNTAINS TO THE EASTERN SHORE.IN FY22, MFB, THROUGH ITS FOOD ASSISTANCE NETWORK, DISTRIBUTED NEARLY 49 MILLION POUNDS OF FOOD TO INDIVIDUALS IN NEED, ENOUGH FOOD TO PROVIDE MORE THAN 40 MILLION MEALS ANNUALLY. OUR TRUCKS WERE ON THE ROAD EVERY DAY, DISTRIBUTING DONATED, PURCHASED, AND HARVESTED FOOD TO A NETWORK OF ROUGHLY 320 COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS THAT COLLECTIVELY PROVIDE NEARLY 1,200 DISTRIBUTION POINTS WITH MUCH-NEEDED FOOD ACROSS 21 COUNTIES AND BALTIMORE CITY. (SEE CONTINUATION ON SCHEDULE O)IN ADDITION TO DISTRIBUTING FOOD TO MEET THE IMMEDIATE NEEDS OF VULNERABLE COMMUNITIES, MFB COLLABORATES WITH THESE PARTNERS TO PROVIDE RESOURCES BEYOND FOOD AND ADDRESS ROOT CAUSES OF HUNGER SO THAT MORE MARYLANDERS CAN BECOME FINANCIALLY STABLE AND THRIVE.THROUGH A FINANCIAL LENS, FY22 WAS A YEAR WHERE THE MARYLAND FOOD BANK'S EXPANDED SIZE AND SCOPE BEGAN TO NORMALIZE. WHILE WE DISTRIBUTED 30% MORE POUNDS THAN WE DID BEFORE THE PANDEMIC, REVENUES DROPPED, PROGRAMS STABILIZED, AND WE RENEWED EFFORTS TO INCREASE OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCY.WE STAYED TRUE TO THE PILLARS OF MFB 3.0, OUR STRATEGIC PLAN-EXPANDING FOOD ACCESS, CREATING PATHWAYS OUT OF HUNGER, AND INVESTING IN ORGANIZATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY & GROWTH-BY COMBINING RICH DATA WITH LOCAL EXPERTISE TO OFFER HUNGER RELIEF TO EVEN MORE MARYLANDERS IN FY22. WE CAN NOW CONFIDENTLY SAY THAT WE ARE AN AGILE, DATA-INFORMED, PERSON-CENTRIC ORGANIZATION THAT IS READY ABLE, AND EAGER TO DO MORE THAN PROVIDE FOOD TO OUR NEIGHBORS IN NEED. OUR STATEWIDE NETWORK OF FOOD ASSISTANCE PARTNERS WAS CRITICAL TO HELPING US KEEP FOOD FLOWING IN FY22. MADE UP OF COMMUNITY- AND FAITH-BASED ORGANIZATIONS (PANTRIES, SOUP KITCHENS, SHELTERS, ETC.), THESE PARTNERS ARE ON THE GROUND EVERY DAY, GETTING FOOD DIRECTLY INTO THE HANDS AND HOMES OF THOSE WHO NEED IT MOST. NOBODY KNOWS THEIR COMMUNITIES BETTER, AND IT'S BECAUSE OF THESE ORGANIZATIONS THAT MFB IS ABLE TO REACH SO MANY HUNGRY MARYLANDERS. IN FY22, THEY HELPED MFB SUPPLY ENOUGH FOOD TO PROVIDE MORE THAN 40 MILLION MEALS, INCLUDING MORE THAN 13 MILLION POUNDS OF PRODUCE, IN THEIR LOCAL COMMUNITIES.THE FOOD BANK REMAINED COMMITTED TO ENSURING ENOUGH FOOD WAS AVAILABLE FOR OUR PARTNER NETWORK USING FUNDING FROM PUBLIC AND PRIVATE SOURCES TO PURCHASE FOOD AND DISTRIBUTE IT AT NO COST. THIS CRITICAL RESOURCE ALSO ALLOWED MFB TO PROVIDE FUNDS DIRECTLY TO OUR NETWORK IN THE FORM OF GRANTS THAT HELPED PARTNERS EXPAND THEIR CAPACITY TO PROVIDE SERVICES BY PURCHASING REFRIGERATORS, FREEZERS, AND VEHICLES, AS WELL AS INCREASE THEIR REACH BY ADDING NEW TECHNOLOGY SYSTEMS AND STAFF. ALL TOLD, THE FOOD BANK AWARDED NEARLY $14.7 MILLION TO NETWORK PARTNERS THROUGH VARIOUS GRANTS AND FOOD-TO-THE-NETWORK FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES IN FY22.ADDITIONALLY, MFB CONTINUED TO RELY ON PURCHASED FOODS RATHER THAN DONATIONS FROM FOOD RETAILERS, MANUFACTURERS, OR GOVERNMENT COMMODITIES, WHICH HAD BEEN STANDARD PRACTICE PRIOR TO COVID-19. MFB SAW A 40% REDUCTION IN DONATED FOODS AND FOOD PRICES AT NEARLY TWICE PRE-PANDEMIC LEVELS, DUE IN PART TO ONGOING SUPPLY CHAIN ISSUES, LABOR SHORTAGES, FUEL COSTS AND EVEN THE COST OF CARDBOARD. IN FY22, MFB SPENT JUST UNDER $20M ON PURCHASED PRODUCT, WHICH EQUATES TO 3.5 TIMES THE VOLUME OF FOOD PURCHAED IN FY19. EVEN THOUGH IT TRANSLATES INTO HIGHER COSTS, WE REMAIN COMMITTED TO USING OUR PURCHASING POWER TO ACCESS MORE NUTRITIOUS FOOD. OTHER MFB PROGRAMS LIKE FARM TO FOOD BANK WILL ALSO CONTINUE TO HELP SUPPLY FRESH PRODUCE TO COMMUNITY PARTNERS. WITH MANY MARYLANDERS LIVING IN AREAS THAT HAVE LITTLE ACCESS TO QUALITY FOODS, THIS PROGRAM HELPS THE FOOD BANK PROVIDE NUTRITIOUS PRODUCE TO COMMUNITIES THROUGH A COMBINATION OF DONATIONS, CONTRACT GROWING, AND FIELD GLEANINGS. IN FY22, THE FARM TO FOOD BANK PROGRAM PARTNERED WITH 53 FARMERS TO DISTRIBUTE MORE THAN 2.5 MILLION POUNDS OF HEALTHY PRODUCE TO NEIGHBORS IN NEED. WE ALSO BEGAN SUPPORTING LOCAL PRODUCE PRODUCTION BY PARTNERING WITH DIVERSE FARMERS THROUGH A PILOT PROGRAM THAT OFFERS CULTURALLY APPROPRIATE PRODUCE. MFB'S DEDICATED FOOD ASSISTANCE NETWORK AND STRONG SOURCING PARTNERSHIPS ALLOWED US TO CONTINUE TO RESPOND TO MEET THE NEED IN FY22. WE DID SO THROUGH A VARIETY OF INNOVATIVE PROGRAMS THAT MOVED FOOD IN A WAY THAT WAS SAFE AND EFFECTIVE FOR OUR STAFF, OUR PARTNERS, AND THE MILLIONS OF HUNGRY MARYLANDERS.PANTRY ON THE GO EVENTS WERE PARTICULARLY VALUABLE, WITH MFB DELIVERING NEARLY 10.5 MILLION POUNDS OF FOOD TO 256 SITES FOR IMMEDIATE, CONTACTLESS DISTRIBUTION TO FOOD-INSECURE COMMUNITY MEMBERS. ALL TOLD, MFB PARTNERS HOSTED 2,029 PANTRY ON THE GO EVENTS IN FY22.ADDITIONALLY, TAILORED BACK UP BOXES (BUBS) FILLED WITH 15 AND 30-LBS OF SHELF-STABLE, NUTRITIOUS FOOD- AS WELL AS NUTRITION EDUCATION MATERIALS AND RECIPES- WERE DISTRIBUTED TO INDIVIDUALS AND FAMILIES ACROSS THE STATE, WITH AN ADDED EMPHASIS ON MEETING THE UNIQUE NEEDS OF LATIN COMMUNITIES, OLDER ADULTS, AND PEOPLE WITH DIABETES. DEVELOPED IN RESPONSE TO THE PANDEMIC, THIS PROGRAM HAS TRANSPORTED, STORED AND DISTRIBUTED MORE THAN 535,000 BUBS TO AREAS WHERE THE NEED WAS GREATEST SINCE MARCH OF 2020.OUR MOBILE MARKET, MEANWHILE, IS DESIGNED TO MOVE BUBS AND FRESH PRODUCE INTO HUNGER HOTSPOTS (OR AREAS OF UNMET NEED) THAT LACK ACCESS TO BRICK-AND-MORTAR FACILITIES AND CONSISTENT RESOURCES WHICH CAN SUPPORT UNIQUE COMMUNITY NEEDS. THROUGH THIS PROGRAM'S 107 EVENTS, ROUGHLY 6,106 BUBS, OR 241,660 POUNDS OF FOOD, WAS DISTRIBUTED IN FY22. BUT BEYOND IMPROVING FOOD ACCESS, REDUCING STIGMA, AND PRESERVING DIGNITY, THIS INITIATIVE SOLVES FOR GEOGRAPHIC CHALLENGES, TRAVELING INTO UNSERVED OR UNDERSERVED RURAL COMMUNITIES THAT CAN BE AS MANY AS 30 MILES FROM THE NEAREST GROCERY STORE. THIS PROGRAM ALSO ALLOWS MFB TO LEARN AND RESPOND TO THE WIDE-RANGING NEEDS OF COMMUNITY RESIDENTS MORE HOLISTICALLY, OFFERING WRAPAROUND SERVICES THROUGH PARTNERSHIPS WITH LOCAL HEALTH, EDUCATION, AND SOCIAL SERVICE AGENCIES.TO ENSURE A STEADY STREAM OF FOOD REACHES CHILDREN IN NEED YEAR-ROUND, THE FOOD BANK ESTABLISHED MFB KIDS, AN INITIATIVE THAT INCLUDES THE SCHOOL PANTRY PROGRAM, THE SUPPER CLUB PROGRAM, AND THE SUMMER CLUB PROGRAM. THE SCHOOL PANTRY PROGRAM REMOVES BARRIERS TO ACADEMIC AND SOCIAL SUCCESS BY PROVIDING CHILDREN ACCESS TO FOOD ASSISTANCE AT THEIR SCHOOL, WHICH THEY THEN BRING HOME TO THEIR FAMILIES. IN FY22, 178 SCHOOL PANTRIES FROM KINDERGARTEN THROUGH 12TH GRADE, IN ADDITION TO 12 SITES AT HIGHER EDUCATION FACILITIES, DISTRIBUTED MORE THAN 2.8 MILLION POUNDS OF FOOD TO FAMILIES IN NEED THROUGH THIS PROGRAM. OUR SUPPER AND SUMMER CLUB PROGRAMS, MEANWHILE, PREPARED AND DISTRIBUTED MORE THAN 542,000 NUTRITIOUS MEALS TO CHILDREN AND THIER FAMILIES IN FY22(SEE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION BELOW ON PROGRAM ACCOMPLISHMENTS.)