LA County Awards Nearly $10 Million in Community Grants to
Advance Food Equity
L.A. Food Equity Fund to support 46
nonprofits working to transform region’s disconnected food system and improve
resident food access
The LA Food
Equity Fund, managed by Community Partners, today announced $9.8
million in community grants to alleviate food insecurity and build a more
resilient food system across Los Angeles County.
Tapping
into federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding, Los Angeles County’s Chief
Sustainability Office and Community
Partners are supporting 46 organizations working to create more just
access to affordable and nutritious food across the Southland. Nearly 3 in 10 County households experienced food insecurity in
2023, according to USC researchers.
The
investments, guided by the ambitious recommendations of the Los Angeles Food
Equity Roundtable Action Plan, range in size from $100,000 to just
over $400,000. The Roundtable,
a private-public partnership of government, philanthropy and community based
organizations, seeks to fundamentally transform our region’s disconnected food
system.
The
grants will fund a wide array of local community groups striving to improve
food access and affordability as well as greater resilience and sustainability
within food supply chains. Capacity-building grants comprise the bulk of
investments.
Food production organizations supported by the
Fund reflect a wide range of diversity, from ALMA Backyard Farms’ urban
agriculture programs in Compton to Street Company’s efforts to better feed
unhoused people in Lancaster through indoor hydroponic farming.
Supply-chain resilience groups receiving funds
include Prosperity Market, which has created a distribution hub for small local
farmers and underrepresented food businesses, and Special Services for
Groups/Asian Pacific Islander Forward Movement, which supports BIPOC farmers by
creating better markets for culturally relevant crops like cassava and taro.
Food access grants range from SÜPRMARKT’s
campaign to provide nutritious meals to 2,500 South L.A. residents living in
so-called “food deserts” each week to El Nido Family Center’s partnership with
the Pacoima Community Center to teach local residents how to sustain their
families by planting, harvesting, and cooking their own organic produce.
Nutrition education awardees include Antelope Valley
Partners for Health, which offers food outreach to vulnerable populations such
as foster youth, justice-involved youth, and parenting students, and Mujeres
Extraordinarias Foundation, which aims to empower 800 Latino families with the
hands-on skills and knowledge needed to make healthier food choices year-round.
Benefits enrollment grantees aim to increase the number
of eligible families who complete applications for government food assistance
programs. Some 322,000 L.A. County residents are eligible for monthly CalFresh
benefits but do not receive them, according to the California Department of
Social Services. Among the groups looking to close the gap: Hunger Action LA,
the National Health Foundation, and Neighborhood Legal Services of LA County.
Food as medicine awardees include Northeast Valley
Health Corporation, which provides bilingual diabetic screenings and
food-support referrals for high-risk residents, and Maternal and Child Health
Access Project, which helps at-risk individuals access Medically Tailored Meal
Plans with coverage from Medi-Cal.
Other
grants awarded provide a wide range of support services, from incubating small
food businesses in underserved communities to aiding street vendors through
food-handling certification programs. For more details, please see this full list of
awarded grantees.
“The
County has a responsibility to act as a safety net for our most vulnerable
communities, who disproportionately suffer from food insecurity,” said L.A. County Supervisor Janice Hahn, who
helped create the Food Equity Roundtable. “This new round of
funding marks an important first step in bringing the Roundtable’s Action Plan
to life and helping those most in need. Today’s investment in our neighborhood
partners will pay dividends throughout the County for years to come.”
Due
to systemic biases and injustices, Latino and Black households in LA County
report higher rates of food insecurity than White households, nearly 2 to 1.
The Roundtable’s Action Plan outlines 14 priority population segments most
likely to experience food insecurity, from immigrant families to transgender
individuals.
“This
funding will certainly help these organizations make a tangible impact on our
food insecurity crisis here in Los Angeles and that is exciting news,” said Cinny Kennard, the executive director of
the Annenberg Foundation and co-chair of the Los Angeles County Food Equity
Roundtable. “At the same time we will press forward with our
partners on the Roundtable to achieve our shared goals of eliminating food
inequality in our city by providing a crucial coordinating board where we can
all work together even as the crisis of food insecurity worsens in our region”
While
$1M of grant funds support direct distribution of culturally relevant food
items, infant formula, diapers, and personal hygiene items, the bulk of awards
aim to drive systemic transformation of inequitable food production models and
outdated supply chains.
“We’re
thrilled to partner with LA County to get these funds into neighborhoods across
LA. This effort mirrors Community Partners’ commitment to racial equity and
supporting the development of strong, healthy communities that, historically,
have been marginalized. We’re especially excited to see local residents
involved in this work for systemic change,” said Alicia Lara, President and CEO of
Community Partners, the Los Angeles-based nonprofit
intermediary that manages the LA Food Equity Fund and selected the 46 awardees
in partnership with a panel of expert advisors.
 |
|
The American Rescue Plan Act provides $1.9 billion in funding to LA
County to build an equitable economic recovery from the devastating
socio-economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. L.A. County is working
to address inequities and transform underserved communities that have been hard
hit during the pandemic with investments from the American Rescue Plan Act and
other funding sources. For more information visit ceo.lacounty.gov/recovery. |
Media Contacts:
Britney Hernandez, Public Information Associate L.A. County Board
of Supervisors Executive Office pio@bos.lacounty.gov,�213-359-9920 | 
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