Conagra Brands Foundation has officially announced the 2024 recipients of its “Nourish Our Community” grants, a development where the company will award one-year grants to 20 nonprofits across 10 states, totaling $350,000 in funding. Arriving on the back of Hunger Action Month, a time when people come together nation-wide to raise awareness and take action on the issue of food insecurity, the announcement from Conagra also extends what is now a three decades-strong effort to address the issues of food insecurity, cooking skills, nutrition education, healthy and active lifestyles, and/or urban agriculture. Talk about some of the recipients who are set to benefit from Conagra’s latest grants, beginning with Aging with Spirit Foundation (NE). This particular foundation aims to help older individuals, dealing with food insecurity by providing them with a hot, nutritious meal daily. To offer some context, Conagra Brand Foundation funding will make it possible for the given foundation to deliver more than 1,600 meals. Next up, we have Archbold Fish (OH). In essence, the promised cash inflow from Conagra Brand will allow Archbold to purchase a wider variety of food items, including milk, eggs, bread, and protein. This, in turn, will create a more consistent food base for pantry clients. Making the foundation’s inclusion even more important is its bid to stay committed towards assisting low-income community members and ensuring they have access to essential nutrition.
Then, there is Back Pack Blessings (GA), an organization focused on distributing backpacks filled with a variety of nonperishable, child-friendly foods. More on the stated backpacks will reveal how they are distributed to elementary students, thus ensuring that they have something to take home over the weekends when their food access might be limited. Such an effort has shown to increase academic potential, as students are not worrying about hunger while at school. Looking at the organization’s operation in line with Conagra’s funding, the money should keep costs low, and therefore, provide backpacks for more than 550 students.
Joining the mix here is Bridge to Hope, an organization best known for providing shelter and assistance to individuals impacted by domestic violence, sexual assault, and human trafficking. Thanks to the grant from Conagra, Bridge to Hope can increase the variety of foods and protein options in its pantry by almost 50 percent. Furthermore, a part of the funding will also be used to supply kitchen kits and help clients acquire the necessary kitchen supplies whenever they move into their own homes.
“Every September, the Nourish Our Community grant program gives our employees the power to make a difference locally, providing relief to their neighbors who may be facing food insecurity,” said Robert Rizzo, Senior Director of Conagra Brands Foundation. “Through this program, we not only raise awareness on this issue, but simultaneously provide financial support to organizations that can make a direct, meaningful impact in our communities.”
Moving on to another recipient in Care for Friends (IL), it will bank upon funding from Conagra to facilitate its pursuit of providing fundamental food programs for individuals in Chicago who are experiencing, or happen to be at risk of homelessness. All in all, Care for Friends offers nutritious on-site meals in a welcoming communal setting, operates a well-stocked food pantry, and delivers fresh groceries to low-income families. One more beneficiary of Conagra’s push is Charity Blooms, an organization dedicated to enhancing the quality of life in their local community through horticulture, agriculture, and education. An example of its impact can also be had once you consider that, in the last seven years; Charity Blooms has successfully donated over 21,000 pounds of food to the community. Now, with Conagra’s grant, the organization will hope to support improvements in its production methods for the 2025 growing season. Alongside that, Conagra will support an organization called Completely Kids. Completely Kids plans on using the newly-raised funds to purchase healthy food items for take-home food bags, a component of the Weekend Food Program.
Beyond that, Conagra will support many other organizations, each one looking to address food insecurity in its own unique way.
