This story was updated to correct information about a Planting Justice farm and grant.
A half-dozen yellow onions. A sack of four potatoes. A small bag of apples. A couple handfuls of sweet potatoes. A cabbage or two.
That’s what the Food Bank of Contra Costa & Solano gave to each of the 360 people who came to a recent distribution event at the Richmond Veterans Memorial Hall.
It may not seem like a lot. But that relatively modest amount of fresh groceries can be the difference between a family eating healthy or even having enough to eat during a given week.
“It’s very important, especially with the high cost of groceries,” said Mary Johnson, a Richmond resident who was one of the first in line that day. “Without it, people will go hungry.”
According to an August 2023 CalMatters story, 1-in-5 Californians are food insecure, meaning they have limited or uncertain access to adequate food. Food insecurity does not necessarily cause hunger, but hunger is a possible outcome. People experience food insecurity in different ways. Some families may only eat lesser quality food, while others may simply eat less.
Now an important lifeline for families like this, could be in jeopardy.
House Republicans have approved a budget blueprint that calls for $230 billion in cuts over the next 10 years to food and other agricultural-related programs. They plan to negotiate with Senate Republicans to craft a final budget resolution.
Caitlin Sly, the president and chief executive officer of the Food Bank, said federal funding reductions this drastic would have “devastating consequences” on local food programs.
“We will have to make tough budget decisions,” she said. “I hope none of this happens,” Sly said.
The Food Bank, which began in a donated Safeway trailer in 1975, provides enough food for 2.7 million meals to 65,000 people in its two-county area every month. Sly said about 8,000 of those clients and 370,000 meals are for the Richmond area.
The nonprofit, which has warehouses in Concord and Fairfield, receives donated food from retailers such as Costco, Safeway and Target as well as from manufacturers and other sources. It also purchases fruits, vegetables and other staples at a reduced cost from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and local farmers.
The Food Bank’s annual operating budget, excluding the value of donated food, is close to $30 million. Sly said they receive about $4.3 million per year in federal funds. The rest comes from individual and corporate donors as well as foundation grants and other sources.
“”
“We will have to make tough budget decisions. I hope none of this happens.
— Caitlin Sly, president and chief executive officer of the Food Bank
Sly said reductions in federal funding would require some adjustments. She said the organization probably wouldn’t reduce the number of food distribution events or turn people away, but it might mean that less food is given out or the food would be of a lesser quality.
“There could be less food per household, so we can still give everybody something,” she said. “The distributions might be less bountiful with less variety.”
West Contra Costa County free food
Here is information about where to find free food or meals in Richmond and surrounding areas.
- Visit the Food Bank of Contra Costa & Solano or see this list of all the places where the Food Bank provides free food.
- This is a list of where to find free food and free meals in Richmond, including fresh produce (20 pounds twice a month at eight locations) as well as locations and distribution schedules for mobile pantries, soup kitchens and food for seniors (55 and up).
- If you need food immediately, Contra Costa Health advises you to call the Food Bank at 855-309-FOOD (3663).
- For emergencies, you may be eligible for CalFresh benefits (formerly known as food stamps) within three days if your monthly gross income is less than $150 and you have less than $100 in cash, checking or savings. Call CalFresh at 877-505-4630 or visit the office closest to your city. In Richmond that’s at 1305 Macdonald Ave.
Dial 211 to get information about food programs, healthcare, housing, and other local resources.
The funding cuts could translate into reductions in other Food Bank programs, such as K-NOW (Kids Nutrition on Weekends), the college pantry, the senior food program or mobile food distributions.
SNAP and local farmers could also be impacted
Congressional Republicans are also eyeing significant cuts to funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which provides food benefits to lower-income families.
Sly said reductions to SNAP and other federal programs could drive up demand for services provided by organizations such as the Food Bank.
“These cuts will be very impactful for us and the people we serve,” said Sly.
Cuts could also impact farmers. The Food Bank purchases surplus commodities from farmers within a 400-mile radius as well as fruits and vegetables that aren’t deemed of high enough quality for grocery stores.
The purchases provide farmers with additional income and reduces their expenses for disposing of these food items.
“The funding reductions would create stress and chaos for us and would do the same for them as well,” Sly said.
What the Food Bank is facing is being felt at nonprofits throughout the community.
Sharif Musaji, the communications director at Planting Justice, said about 25% of the nonprofit organization’s annual $5.5 million budget comes from federal grants.
He said Planting Justice, which operates a farmers market, a cafe and farms in East Oakland and El Sobrante, has been counting on $175,000 in promised federal grant money to support their farmers market and mobile farmers market truck.
To avoid federal cuts, it pushed to construct an aquaponics farm in Oakland before Jan. 1. It is an incubator to develop programs to grow food in urban areas that may have contaminated soil or otherwise be unsuitable for traditional farming.
Now, the organization isn’t certain if it will be reimbursed for all costs and may have to seek funds from other sources.
Musaji said the uncertainty of federal grants has had a “chilling effect” on nonprofits. Many groups, he said, are no longer applying for federal grants because it’s time-consuming and expensive, especially for money that is unlikely to be approved.
Sly said the Food Bank will probably need to increase its outreach to corporate and individual donors. It will also ask the public to volunteer and advocate for food programs.
She added that people who don’t use Food Bank services should still be concerned.
“You never know when you’re going to need help,” she said. “There are so many reasons people come to us. They could easily be you or me.”
Sly noted society has a moral obligation to combat hunger.
“You should care about your neighbors,” she said. “[Hunger] is an injustice that none of us should be OK with.”
“Good, nutritious food is a human right,” added Musaji.
David Bosuego, who has been a driver and site coordinator for the Food Bank for eight years, sees the need every time he sets up shop like he did recently at the Richmond Memorial Veterans Hall.
“This is very important,” he said. “These folks wouldn’t be out here if they didn’t need it.”
Bosuego also says he expects the Food Bank to continue helping people, even with federal funding cuts.
After all, the motto of the Food Bank is “Hunger should never be an option, so we’ll be here as long as our community needs us.”
“This is going to happen, no matter what,” Bosuego said.
Disclosure: Story author David Mills occasionally volunteers for the Food Bank of Contra Costa & Solano.
Oh jeeze.
Does Richmondside really believe that Richmond’s poor are going hungry?
Richmond has so many food pantries nearly every day of the week. And most of the people who go to one food pantry also go to others, whether in Richmond, El Sobrante or San Pablo. So folks are getting free food all the time.
Yes, the cuts be Trump’s administration is looming. So folks will possibly get less food stamps, less medical care and prescriptions, and so on.
Still farmers and dairymen will continue to provide food, even less food, for distribution to poor Californians. It will not end because Trump doesn’t care for poor Americans.