Progress 09/01/15 to 08/31/18
Outputs
Target Audience:Residents of Washington, DC's struggling Wards 5, 7 and 8--home to nearly 220,000 individuals, one-third of whom are children--face enormous barriers to health and economic prosperity. The unemployment rate in these areas is 17%--twice the city's average. The unemployment rate specifically for 18 - 24 year-olds is twice this rate. According to the Urban Institute, 38% of children in Ward 7 and 50% of children in Ward 8 live below the poverty line. And, 44% of all Ward 7 and 8 families rely on SNAP benefits (formerly food stamps). These neighborhoods have also been identified by the USDA as food deserts with little to no access to affordable, healthy food. As a result, 42% of children in these areas are overweight or obese. During year two of our three-year NIFA Community Food Project award, DC Central Kitchen (DCCK) targeted low-income residents, specifically those residing in Wards 5, 7, and 8 with nourishing, healthy, and local food options. Through CACFP and SFSP meal distribution, DCCK reached low-income and food insecure children and adults at 34 agencies including afterschool programs, summer camps, and adult day care centers. Through partnerships with corner stores that help these small retailers stock and sell healthy food in DC's food deserts, DCCK reached thousands of residents in our city's low-income and low-access areas. Approximately three-quarters of our 61 corner store partners are located Wards 5, 7, and 8, and 90% accept SNAP benefits from customers. According to recent customer surveys, 88% of our customers self-identify as African American, 52% reside in Wards 5, 7, or 8, 25% are unemployed, and 29% use food assistance vouchers to purchase our products. And through mutually-beneficial partnerships with businesses and nonprofits, we reached additional vulnerable and at-risk residents of our city. As a mission-driven employer of at-risk and formerly at-risk populations, DC Central Kitchen empowered residents of these same communities to spearhead efforts to increase access to healthy, affordable food and quality, living wage jobs. Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?While this project is not focused on providing training and professional development, the conferences and supplemental educational opportunities that DC Central Kitchen staff attended over the past year brought new knowledge and best practices to this project. These activities were funded through outside support, not USDA funds. DCCK's Chief Development Officer, Alexander Moore, was appointed to DC's Food Policy Council in June 2016. Moore, alongside 12 additional appointed voting members, provided policy guidance around local food businesses, access to food and nutrition education, urban agriculture, and food system education. He served a co-chair of the Sustainable Procurement committee and provided written testimony for several piece of DC legislation, including the Save Good Food Act and Healthy Students Amendment Act. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?As a community-based nonprofit organization with a daily presence at schools, afterschool programs, and corner stores in Wards 5, 7, and 8, DCCK has long-established relationships and unique level of visibility with our target population. Our network of 60+ corner stores receive monthly newsletters that update store owners on new products (including the value-added items developed as a result of the CFP project) and program priorities. In the past year we held 120 community outreach events which reached 27,030 community members, many of which were held directly outside our retail partner stores, to promote the consumption of healthy, local foods. Our nutrition experts offered cooking demos and take-home recipe cards that denoted local ingredients available in the store, so families could prepare healthy meals with locally-sourced ingredients for their families. Many of these events were held in partnership with like-minded organizations such as the DC Greens, Martha's Table, DC HealthLink, Unity Health Care, and others, expanding the scope of individuals who interacted with DCCK programs. More than 200 community members receive monthly newsletters regarding our healthy retail activities including store offerings and upcoming events, and 700 individuals have signed up to receive healthy eating text messages and event updates. Our Food Access and Education team attended the Wards 5, 7, and 8 health councils, promoting our work and best practices at the neighborhood level. Meanwhile, DCCK engaged in numerous activities that promoted the core goals of our USDA-funded project to a wider audience. We share our experience and best practices as members of the DC Food Policy Council (Chief Development Officer, Alexander Moore), the DC Food Recovery Working Group (Director of Procurement & Sustainability, Amy Bachman). Our Director of Food Access & Education Laura Belazis and Nutrition & Community Education Manager Lily Banning presented at the annual Community Food Project meeting in August in Washington, DC. USDA's Dr. Jane Clary Loveless spoke alongside representatives from Wholesome Wave, the DC Department of Health, DC Council, DC Department of Human Services, and DC Hunger Solutions during DC Central Kitchen's public launch of our FINI grant in November 2018. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?
Nothing Reported
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
In Washington, DC's Wards 5, 7, and 8--the city's three USDA-identified food deserts--unemployment stands at 17% and poverty rates are as high as 26%. Pervasive poverty has discouraged the development of a healthy food retail infrastructure, and as such, 71% of DC residents who live in these food deserts are overweight/obese. Meanwhile, 12,900 small and midsize families reside just outside the District's borders, many of whom are unable to access profitable urban markets for their fresh, healthy produce. Less than 7% of all food purchased in the DC areas is sourced locally. In response, DC Central Kitchen's Community Food Project, "Building Collaborative Cross-Sector Infrastructure in the Fight against Food Deserts" leveraged a USDA investment to increase the self-reliance of low-income and low-access communities in providing for their own food needs.DC Central Kitchen (DCCK) is the United States' first and leading community kitchen, a tax exempt 501(c)3 nonprofit social enterprise that fights food waste throughout the food stream, prepares nutritious meals for low-income District residents, and provides job training and sustainable employment opportunities for chronically unemployed adults facing major barriers to financial self-sufficiency. Through USDA's investment, DCCK aggregated nutritious food from farms and other vendors, employed at-risk adults to prepare healthy meals, and snacks, and then distributed those items to corner stores, nonprofits, and small urban groceries. This comprehensive, inclusive, and financially sustainable model empowered low-income individuals to meet their food needs through distributing local food, improved access to food, and promoted participation in Federally assisted nutrition programs like CACFP and SFSP. During thisthree-year CFP award, DC Central Kitchen and its partners in this project facilitated the sale of 710,044 units of healthy and local retail products to corner stores and small urban groceries, produced and distributed 930,455 healthy and locally-sourced meals to CACFP and SFSP agencies, and invested$949,747 in 62 small and midsize area farms. Our most significant accomplishments as a result of this three-year funding include: Received a USDA Food Insecurity Nutrition Incentive (FINI) grant: Since 2011, DC Central Kitchen's nationally acclaimed Healthy Corners program has helped corner stores in low-income neighborhoods stock fresh, healthy, affordable options while working with store owners and consumers to build demand. Thanks to enhanced infrastructure and capacity building support from our USDA-NIFA-CFP funding, we successfully demonstrated customer demand for healthy foods and fresh produce in low-income communities. Last winter, we put forward an application to the USDA's Food Insecurity Nutrition Incentive (FINI) program to develop and pilot the nation's first FINI grant implemented exclusively at corner stores and small businesses. Such projects typically involve farmers' markets, but we know that corner stores are critical in providing access to food seven days a week, and up to 24 hours a day, in neighborhoods with little or no access to full-service grocery stores. We were awarded a three-year, $500,000 Federal grant and matching funds provided by the DC Department of Health. Starting November 2018, this project will help SNAP customers double the value of their purchases at up to 20 participating corner stores. We expect to distribute $270,000 of fresh produce incentives to SNAP customers over the next three years, and share lessons learned from this innovative project with the USDA and FINI network. Launched a Healthy Retail Café in a Food Desert: As a result of our Healthy Corners concept rapidly growing, we developed a retail concept that would allow DCCK to serve as the owner and operator of a healthy food access point in Ward 8, one of DC's largest identified food deserts. This café is located on the grounds of THEARC, a vital and iconic campus of arts organizations, public charter schools, and nonprofits. In addition to serving fresh, locally-sourced produce, healthy grab-and-go items, and café favorites, our 5,000 sq. ft commercial kitchen can offer institutional food service to the nearby organizations and schools and serve as a new CACFP and SFSP production site. This space will also double as an experiential learning and on-the-job training opportunity for disconnected young adults ages 18-25 who are neither in work nor school. This unique social enterprise concept will create its own revenue stream while expanding access to healthy, local foods, CACFP/SFSP reimbursable meals, and career opportunities. We anticipate that once operating at full capacity, this kitchen and café will generate $500,000 - $550,000 in revenue each year. We've secured 65% of the necessary year-one funding, have begun construction, and anticipate opening the café in February 2019. Supported Food Industry Entrepreneurs: Our initial project proposal piloted a partnership with Union Kitchen, a local food business incubator, to co-locate services and share food vendors. After several iterations of this pilot described in previous reports, both parties agreed that the proposed back-end structure no longer made sense for our rapidly growing organizations. Instead, we developed a new strategy to encourage food entrepreneurship and small business development by sending graduates of our Culinary Job Training program interested in starting their own food businesses to Union Kitchen's entrepreneurship program. Five DCCK graduates successfully enrolled, completed the training, and launched food businesses in 2018. They completed in October 2018 in a 'Shark Tank' style pitch to secure financial support from investors to scale their businesses. Additional notable accomplishments as a result of this project include: Built out a new department at DC Central Kitchen dedicated to expanding access to nutrition education and food-based community outreach, staffed by men and women who completed DCCK's Culinary Job Training program themselves. Washington, DC was recognized as having one of the highest participation rates for CACFP and SFSP meal consumption of any district nationwide. Maintained our position as a leading SNAP Employment & Training (SNAP E&T) provider by training more than 40 SNAP recipients each year for hospitality industry careers Recognized as one of the nation's top wellness programs by Duke University's Harkin on Wellness report in 2017, an innovative and industry-driven solution to food deserts by the US Chamber of Commerce's Healthy10 award in 2016, and a national leader in farm-to-school meals by the Physicians Committee on Responsible Medicine in 2015. We were also featured on PBS NewsWeek and National Public Radio in 2018.
Publications
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Progress 09/01/16 to 08/31/17
Outputs
Target Audience:Residents of Washington, DC's struggling Wards 5, 7 and 8--home to nearly 220,000 individuals, one-third of whom are children--face enormous barriers to health and economic prosperity. The unemployment rate in these areas is 17%--twice the city's average. According to the Urban Institute, 38% of children in Ward 7 and 50% of children in Ward 8 live below the poverty line. And, 44% of all Ward 7 and 8 families rely on food stamps. These neighborhoods have also been identified by the USDA as food deserts with little to no access to affordable, healthy food. As a result, 42% of children in these areas are overweight or obese. During year two of our three-year NIFA Community Food Project award, DC Central Kitchen (DCCK) targeted low-income residents, specifically those residing in Wards 5, 7, and 8 with nourishing, healthy, and local food options. Through CACFP and SFSP meal distribution, DCCK reached low-income and food insecure children and adults at 34 agencies including afterschool programs, summer camps, and adult day care centers. Through partnerships with corner stores that help these small retailers stock and sell healthy food in DC's food deserts, DCCK reached thousands of residents in our city's low-income and low-access areas. Approximately 74% of our 71 corner store partners are located Wards 5, 7, and 8, and 90% accept SNAP/food stamp benefits from customers. According to recent customer surveys, 88% of our customers self-identify as African American, 52% reside in Wards 5, 7, or 8, 25% are unemployed, and 29% use food assistance vouchers to purchase our products. And through mutually-beneficial partnerships with businesses and nonprofits, DC Central Kitchen reached additional vulnerable and at-risk residents of our city. Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?While this project is not focused on providing training and professional development, the conferences and supplemental educational opportunities that DC Central Kitchen staff attended over the past year brought new knowledge and best practices to this project. These activities were funded through outside support, not USDA funds. DCCK's Chief Development Officer, Alexander Moore, was appointed to DC's Food Policy Council in June 2016. Moore, alongside 12 additional appointed voting members, provided policy guidance around local food businesses, access to food and nutrition education, urban agriculture, and food system education. He served a co-chair of the Sustainable Procurement committee and provided written testimony for DC's proposed legislation, Save Good Food Act, and DC's new draft Comprehensive Plan for 2020. DC Central Kitchen's Procurement & Sustainability team presented at the USDA's Farmer's Market meeting in June 2017, the National Consumer League's Food Policy Conference, and the BioCycle Conference, and attended the Council on Government's Local Food Distribution in the National Capital and Mid-Atlantic Regions Conference. The Food Access and Education team participated in meetings with the Ward 5 Health Alliance Network, the Ward 7 Health Alliance Network, and the Ward 8 Healthy Council. The team presented at Playworks' Junior Coach Leadership Conference and Rooting DC Annual Forum. This team won the US Chamber of Commerce Foundation's Healthy10 Award for improving food environments in underserved communities, and helped partner nonprofit Liberty's Kitchen launch a similar distribution program in New Orleans. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?As a community-based nonprofit organization with a daily presence at schools, afterschool programs, and corner stores in Wards 5, 7, and 8, DCCK has long-established relationships and unique level of visibility with our target population. Our network of 71 corner stores receive monthly newsletters that update store owners on new products (including the value-added items developed as a result of the CFP project) and program priorities. In the past year we held 149 community outreach events which reached 27,030 community members, many of which were held directly outside our retail partner stores, to promote the consumption of healthy, local foods. Our nutrition experts offered cooking demos and take-home recipe cards that denoted local ingredients available in the store, so families could prepare healthy meals with locally-sourced ingredients for their families. Many of these events were held in partnership with like-minded organizations such as the DC Greens, Martha's Table, Playworks, Metropolitan Police Department, and others, expanding the scope of individuals who interacted with DCCK programs. More than 200 community members receive monthly newsletters regarding our healthy retail activities including store offerings and upcoming events, and 700 individuals have signed up to receive healthy eating text messages and event updates. As previously mentioned, our Food Access and Education team attended the Wards 5, 7, and 8 health councils, promoting our work and best practices at the neighborhood level. Meanwhile, DCCK engaged in numerous activities that promoted the core goals of our USDA-funded project to a wider audience. We share our experience and best practices as members of the DC Food Policy Council (Chief Development Officer, Alexander Moore), the DC Food Recovery Working Group (Director of Procurement & Sustainability, Amy Bachman). Our CEO, Michael Curtin, Jr., keynoted the California State Society Inauguration Luncheon in January 2017 where he presented on DCCK's innovative model that rebuilds urban food systems through social enterprise that benefit low-income and low-access consumers. And we hosted twelve CFP grantees in August for a voluntary site visit to our main kitchen in downtown Washington, DC, where CEO Mike Curtin shared best practices and answered questions regarding our innovative social enterprise model. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Towards Goal 1 in Year 3 (9/1/17 to 8/31/18), DCCK will: *Provide free infrastructure enhancements to 10 more small businesses *Procure between $10,000 and $15,000 in local farm products for retail purposes *Deliver 298,000 units of retail products to participating small businesses *Evaluate increases in store orders and sales of DCCK healthy food products Towards Goal 2 in Year 3 (9/1/17 to 8/31/18), DCCK will: *Procure between $40,000 and $50,000 in local farm products for use in CACFP and SFSP meal and snack preparation *Deliver 170,000 meals and snacks to participating agencies *Evaluate DCCK's increase in local procurement and CACFP/SFSP distribution Towards Goal 3 in Year 3 (9/1/17 to 8/31/18), DCCK will: *UK and DCCK invest a combined $65,000 - $75,000 in local farms Conduct 70 - 75 nutrition education and promotional events, elevating consumer awareness and target population nutritional knowledge *Distribute more than 35,000 informational and marketing materials *Promote the sale of 250,080 units of affordable, healthy food to low-income DC consumers *Promote the consumption of 170,000 healthy CACFP/SFSP meals and snacks Towards Goal 4 in Year 3 (9/1/17 to 8/31/18), DCCK will: *Operate 7 - 8 Culinary Job Training courses for at-risk DC residents *Help its 90 - 100 culinary graduates secure work at foodservice institutions, including Union Kitchen, Good Food Markets, and DCCK itself *With expanded processing and production activities, create 1 additional production position by DCCK and 1 to 3 by Union Kitchen and Union Kitchen members *Provide ongoing job coaching and social support to employed graduates
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
In Washington, DC's Wards 5, 7, and 8--the city's three USDA-identified food deserts--unemployment stands at 17% and poverty rates are as high as 26%. Pervasive poverty has discouraged the development of a healthy food retail infrastructure, and as such, 71% of DC residents who live in these food deserts are overweight/obese. Meanwhile, 12,900 small and midsize families reside just outside the District's borders, many of whom are unable to access profitable urban markets for their fresh, healthy produce. Less than 7% of all food purchased in the DC areas is sourced locally. In response, DC Central Kitchen's Community Food Project, "Building Collaborative Cross-Sector Infrastructure in the Fight against Food Deserts" is leveraging a USDA investment to increase the self-reliance of low-income and low-access communities in providing for their own food needs.DC Central Kitchen (DCCK) is the United States' first and leading community kitchen, a tax exempt 501(c)3 nonprofit social enterprise that fights food waste throughout the food stream, prepares nutritious meals for low-income District residents, and provides job training and sustainable employment opportunities for chronically unemployed adults facing major barriers to financial self-sufficiency. Through USDA's investment, DCCK is aggregating nutritious food from farms and other vendors, employing at-risk adults to prepare healthy meals, and snacks, and then distributing those items to corner stores, nonprofits, and small urban groceries. This comprehensive, inclusive, and financially sustainable model empowers low-income individuals to meet their food needs through distributing local food, improving access to food, and promoting participation in Federally assisted nutrition programs like CACFP and SFSP. During the first two years of thisthree-year CFP award, DC Central Kitchen and its partners in this project facilitated the sale of 464,537 units of healthy and local retail products to corner stores and small urban groceries, produced and distributed 630,455 healthy and locally-sourced meals to CACFP and SFSP agencies, and invested$227,648 in 28 small and midsize area farms. Towards Goal 1: In Year 2, DC Central Kitchen distributed 253,527 units of fresh produce and healthy snacks to corner stores and small urban groceries primarily located in Washington, DC's wards 7 and 8 where residents are least likely to purchase and consume fresh fruits and vegetables compared to other wards. We reached 108% of our Year 2 goal and sold 72,000 more units than in 2015. Our team worked with corner store owners to purchase the correct volume and variety of ingredients based on customer demand and previous monthly reports, and through promotional items and discounts, encouraged store owners to purchase local ingredients where possible. Our new tiered membership model offered a prime opportunity to promote the sale of healthy and local produce through pop-up sales displays and nutrition outreach events to new partner stores that were too small or too unsure of consumer demand to sign up for weekly deliveries right away. As a result, we saw a 24% increase of the sale of local products among our 71 corner store partners located in DC's food deserts. Seventy-one percent of our partner corner stores now stock at least one local item - up from less than half 2 years ago - and recent surveys created and analyzed by researchers at American University's Department of Health Studies show that food quality and local foods are the two most important factors of consideration for our shoppers when they purchase fresh produce from their local corner store. Key partners for these activities included Good Food Markets, a for-profit grocery store in Ward 5 dedicated to increasing the availability of healthy food in its low-income neighborhood, and Union Kitchen, a for-profit food business incubator and small grocery retailer. Together, we and our partners sourced $58,345 of produce from local and regional farmers for retail activities. Towards Goal 2: Using locally-sourced and wholesome ingredients, DC Central Kitchen prepared and distributed 320,455 meals to 34 CACFP and SFSP agencies serving more than 1,010 youth - equating to 196% of our Year 2 goal. We sourced nearly 33% more local produce than anticipated, thanks in part to expanded purchasing power at the Shenandoah Valley Produce Auction, a cooperative of more than 400 small farmers in Dayton, VA. We also established new relationships with Local Food Hub in Charlottesville, VA and The Common Market in Philadelphia, PA, two food hub aggregators of local products, as well as three new farms with whom we formed crop planning partnerships. A new key partnership with the Metropolitan Police Department's Beat the Streets summer festivals between June and August provided an opportunity to provide sack meals and fresh produce bundles to more than one thousand youth living in low-income neighborhoods who would otherwise rely on free and reduced-price meals during the school year. Together, DCCK staff - many of whom are graduates of our Culinary Job Training program for at-risk and formerly incarcerated adults - and MPD officers spent eight Wednesdays helping to dispel neighborhood violence and improve community relations through food. DCCK shared job training recruitment fliers with interested adults and engaged children with our Truck Farm, the mobile urban garden which grows herbs, greens, and root vegetables. In addition to being an important community-building opportunity, DCCK received reimbursements from the USDA for sack meals we provided to children during the summer months. Towards Goal 3: DC Central Kitchen successfully increased the purchase and consumption of healthy and locally-sourced foods among our target population. Retail customers purchased 72,000 more units of healthy and locally-sourced food items this past year than in 2015 when this project launched and CACFP and SFSP agency clients (primarily youth) received more than double the number of nutritious meals from DC Central Kitchen this year than in 2015. Ninety-six percent of store owners agreed that selling fresh produce in their store increased their number of customers, and 75% of surveyed youth and young adults reported an increased willingness to purchase and consume healthier options. Towards Goal 4: As a result of this project, 5 DC Central Kitchen culinary graduates have been hired since 2015, 7 DC Central Kitchen graduates were placed in transitional employment at Union Kitchen and Union Kitchen member Good Food Markets, and 2 DC Central Kitchen graduates have been trained to conduct outreach activities and cooking demonstrations. We built out a new Food Access and Education department at DC Central Kitchen this year to accommodate this project's growth - 37% of the men and women employed on that team are graduates of our Culinary Job Training Program for unemployed and formerly incarcerated adults. Across all programs, we employed 76 of our graduates to make and distribute meals, mentor new students, and run the programs they once relied upon - up from 60 graduates on staff the year prior. Graduates comprise a full 43% of DCCK's workforce, and fueled our social enterprise portfolio which generated $8,739,655 in Fiscal Year 2017.
Publications
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2017
Citation:
Presented at USDA NIFA CFP Directors Meeting in August 2017
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Progress 09/01/15 to 08/31/16
Outputs
Target Audience:Residents of Washington, DC's struggling Wards 5, 7 and 8--home to nearly 220,000 individuals, one-third of whom are children--face enormous barriers to health and economic prosperity. The unemployment rate in these areas is 17%--twice the city's average. According to the Urban Institute, 38% of children in Ward 7 and 50% of children in Ward 8 live below the poverty line. And, 44% of all Ward 7 and 8 families rely on food stamps. These neighborhoods have also been identified by the USDA as food deserts with little to no access to affordable, healthy food. As a result, 42% of children in these areas are overweight or obese. During the first nine months of our three-year NIFA Community Food Project award, DC Central Kitchen (DCCK) targeted low-income residents, specifically those residing in Wards 5, 7, and 8 with nourishing, healthy, and local food options. Through CACFP and SFSP meal distribution, DCCK reached low-income and food insecure children and adults at 32 agencies including afterschool programs, summer camps, and adult day care centers. Through partnerships with corner stores that help these small retailers stock and sell healthy food in DC's food deserts, DCCK reached thousands of residents in our city's low-income and low-access areas. Approximately 74% of our 71 corner store partners are located Wards 5, 7, and 8, and 90% accept SNAP/food stamp benefits from customers. According to recent customer surveys, 88% of our customers self-identify as African American, 52% reside in Wards 5, 7, or 8, 25% are unemployed, and 29% use food assistance vouchers to purchase our products. Changes/Problems:While not a major challenge, the initial development and launching of our co-packing line with Union Kitchen took somewhat longer than anticipated, as is common with cross-sector partnerships and the early stages of most any multi-year grant. This project engages more than a dozen staff members across our organizations including, on the DCCK side, the Chief Development Officer, Chief Operating Officer, Chief Financial Officer, Director of Procurement & Sustainability, Procurement Coordinator, Director of Nutrition & Community Outreach, Community Outreach & Nutrition Coordinator, Director of Monitoring & Evaluation, Grants Manager, and Associate Director of Communications, and on the Union Kitchen side, the Founders and Presidents, Development Manager, Grants Manager, Co-Packing Manager, and Director of Marketing. We successfully brought together all necessary parties from both DC Central Kitchen and Union Kitchen monthly throughout September 2015 - February 2015 to develop our line of locally-sourced value-added offerings, and develop the initial systems for co-sourcing and co-packaging. Beginning in March 2016, our co-packaging line was fully staffed and operational. Although it took nearly six months to launch, DCCK and Union Kitchen are now well prepared to continue, and grow, our local sourcing efforts to reach more markets and more low-income consumers in the upcoming grant year. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?While this project is not focused on providing training and professional development, the conferences and supplemental educational opportunities that DC Central Kitchen staff attended over the past nine months brought new knowledge and best practices to this project. These activities were funded through outside support, not USDA funds. DCCK's Chief Development Officer, Alexander Moore, was named by Mayor Muriel Bowser to DC's Food Policy Council in June 2016. Moore, alongside 12 additional mayorally-appointed voting members, will provide policy guidance around local food businesses, access to food and nutrition education, urban agriculture, and food system education. During his first year, Moore has been appointed to chair the sustainable food procurement and food recovery sub-committee. Meanwhile, DCCK's Director of Procurement & Sustainability, Amy Bachman, participated in numerous conferences and workshops around building robust local food systems and preventing food waste. Over the past nine months, she presented at the USDA Advisory Committee on Food Waste, the USDA Farmer's Market meeting, a Feeding America Briefing on Food Rescue and Donations for the House of Agriculture Committee, the Organic Waste Summit, and the White House Roundtable on Food Waste Innovation. Bachman also attended the National Consumer League Summit on Food Waste, the Maryland Buyer Growers Convention through the Maryland Department of Agriculture, Harvard Food Policy Clinic's Rescue and Recover Conference and Food Waste Entrepreneurs Workshop in Boston, the Food Waste Fair at the House of Agriculture Committee, the Farm to Cafeteria Conference through the Farm to School Network, and Food and Climate: Changes, Challenges, Opportunities through the American Geophysical Union, among other summits. Bachman also became a member of the DC Food Recovery Working Group, and has met monthly with other organizations tackling food waste to develop collaborative infrastructure and shared best practices. Additionally, DCCK's Director of Nutrition & Community Outreach, Janell Walker, was selected to serve as a member of the DC Department of Health's "Diabesity" Committee for the Community Health Administration and as panelist for "Wellness in the African American and Diaspora Community" hosted by the National Organizations of Blacks in Dietetics and Nutrition - a dietetic practice group with the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Walker worked alongside Health Alliance Networks in Wards 5, 7, and 8 this past year, where she continued to engage the community in conversations around health and food by providing our expertise and dialogue to local committees. Walker also led several graduate student research groups, notably with the George Washington Milken Institute of Public Health to track healthy food access across the city. She presented at George Washington University, George Mason University, Howard University, and the University of the District of Columbia. DCCK's Community Outreach & Nutrition Coordinator, Alexandra Stern, presented at the first annual Transforming Food Access Summit: Accelerating Affordability with Nutrition Incentives hosted by Wholesome Wave in Atlanta, Georgia. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?As a community-based nonprofit organization with a daily presence at schools, afterschool programs, and corner stores in Wards 5, 7, and 8, DCCK has a long-established relationships and unique level of visibility with our target population. Our network of 71 corner stores receives monthly newsletters that update store owners on new products (including the value-added items developed as a result of this CFP project) and program priorities. In the past nine months we held 134 community outreach events, many of which were directly outside our retail partner stores, to promote the consumption of healthy, local foods in DC's food deserts. Our nutrition experts offered cooking demos and take-home recipe cards that denoted local ingredients available in the store, so families could prepare healthy meals with locally-sourced ingredients for their families. Many of these events were held in partnership with like-minded organizations such as the Capital Area Food Bank, Playworks, DC Greens, and the DC Department of Parks & Recreation, expanding the scope of individuals who interacted with DCCK programs. More than 200 community members receive now monthly newsletters regarding our healthy retail activities including store offerings and upcoming events, and 700 individuals have signed up to receive healthy eating text messages and event updates from DCCK. As previously mentioned, our Director of Nutrition & Community Outreach and Community Outreach & Nutrition Coordinators served on the DC DOH Diabesity committee and Ward 5 Health Alliance, promoting our work and best practices at the neighborhood level. In the upcoming year, DC Central Kitchen and Union Kitchen's co-sourced and co-packaged value-added items will not only be available through DCCK's network of corner stores in low-income communities, but also at Union Kitchen's network of small grocery stores in more mixed-income communities, building more sustainable revenue streams once CFP funds concludes. To promote this project to a wider audience across DC, DCCK attended Union Kitchen's Open Tasting Event in March 2016 where we provided samples of our value-added products to retail businesses, food entrepreneurs, chefs, and media members. DCCK and Union Kitchen also developed a 30-second Radio One advertisement, text as follows: "Local small business food incubator, Union kitchen, has teamed-up with workforce development-focused nonprofit and social enterprise, DC Central Kitchen, to create a new line of local, healthy, grab-and-go snacks. The items are prepared by DC Central Kitchen's culinary job training graduates working at Union Kitchen's Ivy City incubator to produce and package the value-added products. Look for the co-branded products at Union Kitchen Grocery and feel good about buying local, today!" Meanwhile, DCCK engaged in numerous activities that promoted the core goals of our USDA-funded project to a wider audience. We share our experience and best practices as members of the DC Food Policy Council (Chief Development Officer, Alexander Moore), the DC Food Recovery Working Group (Director of Procurement & Sustainability, Amy Bachman), and the DC Department of Health's "Diabesity" Committee (Director of Nutrition & Community Outreach, Janell Walker). Our CEO, Michael Curtin, Jr., keynoted the American Farm Bureau Federation's national conference in Washington, DC in May 2016 where he presented on DCCK's innovative local farm partnerships and work rebuilding urban food systems that benefit low-income and low-access consumers. On May 18th 2016, DC Central Kitchen co-hosted DC's first Feeding the 5000, a city-wide event designed to shed light on the growing crisis of food waste by repurposing fresh, top-quality ingredients that would have otherwise been wasted into 5000 free meals for the community. Held at the Woodrow Wilson Plaza at the Ronald Regan International Trade Center in downtown Washington, DC, notable speakers in the day's events included US Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, Chef and Restaurateur José Andrés, Chef and Restaurateur Spike Mendelsohn, Dr. Zia Kahn of the Rockefeller Foundation, and Tristram Stuart of the international NGO Feedback, among others. Ultimately serving up more than 6,700 free meals utilizing wasted fresh produce and quality ingredients, Feeding the 5000 DC boasted 106 million media impressions and received national press including from National Public Radio, National Geographic, The Washington Post, The Huffington Post, Washingtonian, NBC4 Washington, Edible DC, DCist, and Eater.com. In addition to presenting at Feeding the 5000, US Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack keynoted the Food Waste & Hunger Summit in Feyetteville, Arkansas, hosted by DCCK's national arm, The Campus Kitchens Project (CKP). With a network of 23,000 students recovering 1 million pounds of food each year, CKP is the largest student-run organization fighting hunger and food waste in the country. Secretary Vilsack spoke to the nearly 200 student attendees on the USDA's approach to building more sustainable, healthy food systems across the country. DCCK also promoted our multi-faceted partnership with the USDA at the most recent graduation of DCCK's 104th Culinary Job Training class for at-risk, unemployed adults. CEO Michael Curtin Jr. introduced keynote speaker Eric Ratchford, the USDA's Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Regional Director for the Mid-Atlantic Region, as a key partner in DCCK's and USDA's shared goals to empower underserved communities by providing opportunities for thriving regional food systems and economic advancement. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Towards Goal 1 in Year 2 (9/1/16 to 8/31/17), DCCK will: Provide free infrastructure enhancements to 10 more small businesses Procure between $7,000 and $12,000 in local farm products for retail purposes Deliver 261,000 units of retail products to participating small businesses, including Union Kitchen Grocery and other high-end small retailers Streamline the processing for collaborative sourcing with Union Kitchen, after pilot attempts in 2016 Evaluate increases in store orders and sales of DCCK healthy food products Towards Goal 2 in Year 2 (9/1/16 to 8/31/17), DCCK will: Procure between $35,000 and $45,000 in local farm products for use in CACFP and SFSP meal and snack preparation Deliver 162,000 meals and snacks to participating agencies Ramp up production during the summer months for SFSP agencies Evaluate DCCK's increase in local procurement and CACFP/SFSP distribution Towards Goal 3 in Year 2 (9/1/16 to 8/31/17), DCCK will: UK and DCCK invest a combined $52,000 - $62,000 in local farms Conduct 65 - 70 nutrition education and promotional events Promote the sale of 234,876 units of affordable, healthy food to low-income DC consumers Promote the consumption of 162,000 CACFP/SFSP meals and snacks Towards Goal 4 in Year 2 (9/1/16 to 8/31/17), DCCK will: Operate 7 - 8 Culinary Job Training courses for at-risk DC residents 90 - 100 DCCK culinary graduates secure work at foodservice institutions, including UK, UK member businesses, and DCCK itself With expanded processing and production activities at DCCK and UK, create 1 additional production position by DCCK and 1 to 3 by UK and UK members Provide ongoing job coaching and social support to employed graduates
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
In Washington, DC's Wards 5, 7, and 8--the city's three USDA-identified food deserts--unemployment stands at 17%, poverty rates at26% and obesity rates of 70% amonglow-income residents. In response, DC Central Kitchen's Community Food Project, "Building Collaborative Cross-Sector Infrastructure in the Fight against Food Deserts"investment to increase the self-reliance of low-income and low-access communities in providing for their own food needs. This comprehensive, inclusive, and financially sustainable model empowers low-income individuals meet their food needs through food distribution, improving access to food, and promoting participation in Federally assisted nutrition programs. In the first nine months of a three-year CFP award, DC Central Kitchen has invested $74,984 in 28 local farms, facilitated the sale of 175,427 units of healthyretail products to small corner stores, and partnered with the business incubator Union Kitchen to launch our city's only cross-sector joint processing line staffed by at-risk adults. Goal 1: Increase distribution of healthy foods, including locally sourced farm products, to corner stores and small urban groceries in DC food deserts. 1.1 DCCK conducted a retail audit of existing healthy food infrastructure within our network of 71 corner stores, and provided free infrastructure enhancements (refrigeration units, display bins, baskets, signage) to 10 small businesses to increase their ability to stock and sell fresh, healthy food, successfully meeting our goal. 1.2 DCCK and Union Kitchen (key organizational partner, for-profit food business incubator) jointly procured $3,454 of local produce and ingredients specifically for retail purposes, towards of goal of $5,000. By the conclusion of year 1 on 8/31/16, we anticipate reaching $4,125. This amount of local purchasing specifically for retail purposes constitutes a 495% growth rate over 2015. 1.3/1.4 DCCK delivered 175,427 units of retail products to corner stores and small urban groceries, towards our goal of 221,000 units. We anticipate reaching 211,500 units by 8/31/16. Our line of 48 healthy retail offerings included grab-and-go produce, fresh ingredients for home cooking, and value-added packaged items. The number of corner stores in our network increased from 67 to 71 at present. From January-May 2016, corner store healthy food sales increased 12% over the corresponding months in 2015. The purchase of these healthy food offerings generated $20,346 in retail sales by corner stores in low-income communities over the past nine months. 1.5 DCCK partnered with Union Kitchen (UK) to launch our city's only cross-sector joint processing line staffed by at-risk adults. Beginning in September 2015, DCCK and UK met monthly to develop an integrated plan for collectively sourcing, packaging, and distributing healthy, local, value-added items to DCCK's network of 71 corner stores and UK's network of small groceries stores. Between September and March, we co-developed a line of 8 value-added items sourced with local ingredients, including a trail mix with Virginia peanuts, a garden salad with DC-grown greens, and fresh-cut Virginia strawberries, among others. UK hired a Co-Packing Manager to ensure quality control and product safety of the production line. Since March, we have co-produced 5,036 value-added items that have been distributed through DCCK's corner store network reaching consumers in low-income and low-access communities. Goal 2: Increase distribution of healthy foods, including locally sourced farm products, to social service agencies serving low-income DC children and families. 2.1 DCCK procured $24,382 in products from 17 local farms for CACFP and SFSP meals, towards our goal of $30,000. We anticipate reaching $29,260 in local ingredients by 8/31/16. Nearly 20% of all CACFP/SFSP local food purchases were local 'seconds'-- aesthetically imperfect or bruised produce which DCCK purchased at discount from 10 local farms reducing food waste and giving small and midsize farmers a market for produce which would have little retail value. 2.3/2.4 DCCK delivered 207,022 meals and snacks to participating CACFP and SFSP agencies, exceeding our goal of 155,000. By the close of our first year on 8/31/16, we are on track to deliver nearly 248,000 meals and snacks, 60% higher than our anticipated goal. In an effort to provide more social service agencies with the top-quality, locally-sourced ingredients for their client, DCCK worked to build our wholesaling capacity. This year, we purchased $26,801 of local product that we then sold and delivered to 6 businesses and social service organizations. Goal 3: Increase purchases and consumption of healthy and local foods by low-income DC residents. 3.1 DC Central Kitchen and UK together invested $74,984 in 28 small and midsize area farms, exceeding our goal of $45,000. Between April-June 2016, DCCK increased our local sourcing by 38% over this same quarter last year. One of our strategies for increasing consumer interest in locally soured items was to feature a monthly produce promotion highlighting a local produce item at a discount to both store owners and to their customers. 3.2/3.3 DCCK conducted 134 nutrition education and outreach events to elevate consumer awareness, exceeding our goal of 60 events. Eleven of these events included an appearance by DCCK's Truck Farm--a mobile urban garden planted in the bed of a pickup truck that we use as a teaching tool for youth. After conducting 400 youth surveys, we found that 3 out of 4 youth are willing to purchase healthier food options but only 4 in 10 consume fruits and vegetables every day. Moving forward, DCCK will do more to make our marketing of affordable items kid-friendly, and ensure our products are for sale in neighborhoods surrounding schools. 3.4 DCCK promoted the sale of 175,427 units of affordable, healthy food to low-income DC consumers, up from baseline of 139,442. Through this project we sold 26% more healthy retail food than 2015. 50% partner store owners report seeing an increase in their profit as a result of stocking healthy food. After conducting over 1,000 surveys, we found that 90% of surveyed community members are very willing to purchase healthier food options but only half of them believe there are enough healthy food retail options available in their community, indicating that consumer demand has not yet been met. 3.5 DCCK promoted the consumption of 207,022 healthy CACFP/SFSP meals and snacks up from our baseline of 148,000. Through this project we distributed 39% more healthy meals and snacks to partner agencies than 2015. As a result, 62% of surveyed youth report eating a vegetable every day, up from 40% last year, and 54% report eating a fruit every day, up from 41% last year. Goal 4: Create 7 to 10 new jobs for at-risk individuals through the expansion of DCCK and UK healthy and local food purchasing, processing, and distribution activities. 4.1/4.2 DCCK operated 8 Culinary Job Training courses for at-risk DC residents facing serious barriers to employment, exceeding our goal of 7. We produced 91 culinary graduates, 76 of whom have since secured work at food service institutions and 15 of whom came to work at DCCK. We continue to work towards our goal of placing 90 individuals in food service jobs. 4.3 This project successfully created 5 new FTE positions, exceeding our goal of 2-3 new positions. DCCK and UK jointly hired a Co-Packaging Manager to manage our joint processing line, brought on 2 new FTE positions filled by formerly food insecure women who completed DCCK's Culinary Job Training Program, and hired a Procurement Coordinator and a Community Outreach & Nutrition Coordinator. 4.4 DCCK provided ongoing job coaching and social support to employed graduates, meeting our goal, by proving social support referrals and offering ongoing networking opportunities and job fairs.
Publications
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