Impact Report 2024

Welcome

Founded in 1975, the Food Bank of Contra Costa and Solano strives to serve all people experiencing hunger or food insecurity in Solano and Contra Costa Counties and to never turn anyone away.

Through our partnership with Feeding America, a nonprofit network of 200 food banks and the nation’s largest domestic hunger relief organization, we lend support to hunger-fighting organizations in 16 Northern California counties.

The Food Bank is committed to continuously fostering a culture of inclusion among our employees, volunteers, and community that promotes diverse perspectives, lived experiences and equitable access and opportunities essential to achieving our mission of leading the fight to end hunger.

The Food Bank of Contra Costa and Solano is a registered 501(c)(3). Our federal tax ID is 94-2418054.

A Letter from Our CEO

As I reflect back this last year, I think of one word: gratitude. It was my first year in this meaningful role, and I am grateful for your steadfast support and partnership in the fight against hunger. This year also marked the completion of our three-year strategic plan, an impactful milestone that would not have been possible without you by our side.

With your support, we’ve improved the long-term health of our community, strengthened our network of hunger-fighting partners to help us serve the most vulnerable, and improved our processes, data, and technology so that we make strategic, cost-effective decisions. You will read about just how impactful you’ve been this year in the pages of this report.

You’ve inspired this report’s theme of Community Serving Community. Our collective strength will help bolster us in the year ahead as we prepare for unpredictable challenges. As many of you have been reading in the news, our federal funds are at risk. Though we can’t say for certain, we’re anticipating negative impacts to some of our most critical services – like our ability to source fresh produce from local farmers, or provide nutritious meals to kids and seniors (read more on page 12).

Despite what lies ahead, it’s because of you that we have hope and resilience. We have overcome challenges together before. In fact, this year, the Food Bank marks another significant milestone — 50 years of fighting hunger.

When I look back at the past five decades, I remain optimistic because I see what we have accomplished together, and the incredible safety net we’ve built despite challenges. In 1975, our Food Bank had a pickup truck, which we used to collect day-old bread that would otherwise be discarded. This year, our fleet of trucks will transport nutritious food to hundreds of distribution sites and partner agencies – all working together to serve over 65,000 households a month. I don’t think the community members who first came together to fight hunger could have imagined we’d be where we are today.

The work continues as we begin planning Strategic Plan 2030. In today’s climate, how can we continue to innovate to solve problems and be sustainable? How can we support our most vulnerable neighbors with limited resources? How can we work in partnership to address the deeper, systemic issues that lead to food insecurity, so we eradicate hunger for good?

These are the hard questions we look to address. So, I hope that the pages of this report convey not just how much we have accomplished, but how critical you are in the years ahead. In unpredictable times, I have faith that when community supports community, we will all make it through the other side stronger than before.

Caitlin Sly
Food Bank President and CEO

Our Mission

Leading the fight to end hunger, in partnership with our community and in service of our neighbors in need.

Building a hunger-free community together

Your support allows us to distribute much-needed food throughout our two counties every day of the week through direct distributions and our network of community partners, including soup kitchens, food pantries and childcare centers.

And, you support critical work to create long-term solutions to hunger, improve our community’s well-being and strengthen the safety net for everyone in Contra Costa and Solano Counties.

Meet Jim

When Jim’s car started breaking down and his hours at work got cut back, groceries from our partners at the Amador St. Hope Center helped him manage his tight budget through a rough patch. Now Jim is paying it forward by volunteering to help other Fairfield residents get the food they need.

“It’s great with protein, eggs, bread – the things that I would buy anyway. It allowed me to not have to spend that money every week.”

Our Impact on Hunger

The Hunger Gap is Closing

Thanks to your support, we’ve made tangible progress on the three key pillars of our Strategic Plan. And with you by our side, we can maintain this progress and continue our critical work despite the unpredictable climate ahead.

1

Empowering our Agencies

Our 245 partners are getting more food where it’s needed, and closing the hunger gap for underserved communities.

2

Improving Health Outcomes

You’ve helped us increase our neighbors’ access to nutritious foods that help manage and maintain their health.

3

Enhancing Data and Technology

Technological upgrades you’ve supported make the Food Bank more efficient and nimble – so your support goes further.

Mobile Pantry

Evolving to Meet Our Community's Needs

We continue to adapt our services to meet our community’s changing needs, provide a dignified experience for our neighbors and offer a choice of foods that are not only nutritious but also culturally-relevant. Our Mobile Pantry is a prime example.

The Mobile Pantry program evolved from several of our pandemic offerings, including our “Drive-Thru” no-contact programs created at the height of the pandemic. Streamlining these services saves critical funds while ensuring our neighbors continue to receive fresh produce, proteins, dairy products and staple foods.

Many of these items are provided through The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) – a federal program that helps food banks like ours source a wide variety of nourishing and culturally-relevant food. By tapping into these funds, we’re able to stretch gifts from supporters like you even further, to ensure everyone can get the food they need.

“Our TEFAP sites run on a Choice model, which allows families the freedom to choose what they take home, and to deny what they wouldn’t use. There’s a dignity in choosing what they want to take.”

– Geo Dauz-Dinoso, Mobile Distributions Program Coordinator

It Takes a Community to
Serve Our Community

Your support helps power not just the Food Bank, but our network of 245 partner nonprofits who extend our reach across Contra Costa and Solano Counties. With federal funds that help our agencies access healthy food at risk, your partnership remains critical, so we can serve every corner of our community.

Over the past three years…

34 new agencies, like Hijas del Campo, partnered with us to reach underserved communities in Contra Costa and Solano Counties.
Agency empowerment grants helped our partners purchase trucks, fridges, freezers and other essential equipment – so they can distribute more fresh and healthy food to our neighbors, including millions of pounds of groceries rescued from local businesses.
With your help, our partners are delivering 880,000 more meals than they did before our strategic plan.

Meet Hijas Del Campo

Our partnerships enable us to reach everyone who needs support – including local farmworkers. Agricultural fieldworkers in east Contra Costa County work hard to grow our food, but who helps them put food on their tables? Founded by the daughters of farmworkers, Hijas del Campo aims to fill this hunger gap.

Thanks to your support, they’ve been able to partner with the Food Bank to provide fresh, healthy and culturallyrelevant food to hundreds of families in Brentwood.

“It’s a game changer for us because it’s healthy food . . . when you come together with other people in community you really are building this safety net of love and support.”

– Marivel Mendoza, Executive Director

See how your support is helping Hijas del Campo make a difference for farmworkers and their families.

Community Health Starts
With Nutritious Food

Food is medicine – and thanks to you, we’ve disrupted the negative impacts of food insecurity, while supporting local businesses and farms, growing children and the long-term health of our neighbors. With anticipated cuts to government programs like the Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement, which helped us purchase fresh, locally-grown produce, community support is essential to maintain our community’s wellbeing.

Over the past three years…

We’re using Healthy Eating Research Nutrition Guidelines to rank all the foods we distribute as “choose often,” “choose sometimes” or “choose rarely” – to help us make healthier decisions about the food we provide.
Menu improvements mean vulnerable populations, like kids and seniors, are eating more nutrient-dense foods that support good health.
Thanks to supporters like you, we’ve increased the amount of fresh food we distribute to 68%!

Meet Wesley

Since he started coming to our Mobile Food Pharmacy in Vacaville for fresh, healthy produce, Wesley has been breathing better and feeling healthier. He’s even started a garden with seeds from the fruits and vegetables you help provide.

“I’m just thankful that they tell me what I can do with the different stuff they give me. I didn’t know much about cauliflower… now I love it.”

Improved Technology,
Strategic Decisions

With your help, we’ve upgraded our technology and data collection processes so we can serve our neighbors efficiently, and with maximum impact.

Over the past three years…

Upgrades in our warehouses are making us faster, and providing better data about the types of food our neighbors and partners need most.
Improved data processes give us a clearer picture of hunger in our community – so we can identify and address underserved communities and gaps in service.
Federal funds like The Emergency Food Assistance Program have helped scale our impact, so we can stay cost-effective and stretch your dollars further while meeting our community’s need for food. The future of these funds, and the food they provide, is now uncertain.

Meet Rafa

Like many of the Food Bank’s delivery driving heroes, Rafa’s day starts early. And thanks to your support, our warehouse team is working more efficiently than ever to get him on the road. By 6 a.m., he’s ready to roll out with a truckload of fresh produce and healthy staples for our partner food pantries and soup kitchens. Our agency partners distribute this food to neighbors in need, touching lives throughout our community.

Join Rafa as he puts your support in action on a typical morning as a Food Bank truck driver.

CalFresh: A Powerful Hunger-Fighting Tool

Did you know that CalFresh* is one of the most powerful hunger-fighting programs in the country? This program helps your neighbors buy groceries when money is tight, empowering them to purchase the foods that will best meet their household needs, while supporting businesses in their community.

But millions of Californians are not aware they qualify, or struggle with the application process. And nationally, the program faces billions of dollars in cuts. Our multilingual CalFresh team is here to connect our neighbors to the resources they need, while our Advocacy team works to maintain this critical safety net.

* known as SNAP nationally, formerly food stamps

Our CalFresh Impact in 2024

5.3 MILLION**
Californians rely on CalFresh to supplement their grocery budgets, including more than 2 million children.

3.2 MILLION MEALS
Provided in Contra Costa and Solano Counties through CalFresh

$18,147,419
In local economic impact generated. Every $1 in CalFresh benefits generates as estimated $1.50 in economic activity at authorized food retailers in our community.**

**Center on Budget and Policy Priorities

Working Together for Hunger Solutions

This year, our Advocacy Team and Community Advocates focused on maintaining safety net programs our neighbors rely on, and partnering with local governments and nonprofits to create innovative solutions to fight hunger. Here are a few of the wins your support made possible:

You saved Market Match, a program that provides matching funds for CalFresh recipients to spend at farm stands and farmers’ markets.
Permanent authorization for the State Emergency Food Bank Reserve Program ensures that healthy food is available to support victims of disasters.
California maintained its commitment to providing universal school meals, a huge step toward ending child hunger.

An innovation grant from Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors is funding a pilot food locker program in 2025. These lockers make food more accessible to neighbors whose work schedules conflict with distributions.
With support from Impact100 East Bay, we’re partnering with other hunger-fighting nonprofits in Contra Costa County. Our new Food Security Collaborative is mapping the need in our community to identify gaps in service and opportunities to provide more culturally-relevant food.

Meet Deborah

“I’ve always had food my entire life. 71 years and I’ve never worried about food. But when I see the looks on some of the people here, I know that’s not true for a lot of Americans... I want to make a change and be there to make a difference in their lives.”

Last year, more than 7,000 volunteers like Deborah gave their time to help nourish their community. Together, they provided over 110,000 hours of support – the equivalent of more than 50 full-time staff positions. Our work would not be possible without them!

Legacy in Motion

Charting a New Course in the Fight Against Hunger

Over the past 50 years, our Food Bank community has changed the face of hunger in Contra Costa and Solano Counties. As we reflect on the progress you’ve made possible, we’re also facing big questions about how we can continue to maintain our progress in the current climate – and position ourselves for the next 50 years of service to our community.

Strategic Plan 2030 will guide the Food Bank’s critical work over the next five years. This plan is informed by input from our agency partners, our staff, our community, and our neighbors in need, who are at the heart of all we do.

We look forward to sharing our new strategic pillars with you in the months ahead. Your support makes all the difference as we face our challenges head-on to end hunger.

Build Up Your Team - and Your Community

Are you looking for a meaningful and memorable way to bring your team together? Whether you’re joining us for a volunteer shift at our newly-upgraded volunteer centers in Fairfield and Concord, or bringing the Food Bank to your workplace through our on-site team-building experience, you’ll help make an impact for more than 65,000 households facing hunger.

To learn more about this and other partnership opportunities, contact sponsorships@foodbankccs.org

Meet David

Retired BART worker David appreciates being able to come to the Loaves and Fishes’ dining room in Martinez for hot, healthy lunches made with food you’ve helped provide. He likes that the meals are balanced and filled with plenty of vegetables to help him manage his diabetes. And they give him space in his budget to care for his 13 year-old granddaughter, too.

“It helps because I’m on a fixed income, and I told my granddaughter she could eat anything out of the fridge.”

Our Financials

Support & Revenue

TOTAL SUPPORT AND REVENUE	$157,080,691
Individuals	$13,389,188
Corporations	$3,030,772
Foundation Grants	$3,249,677
Government Grants	$8,278,657
Organizational Support	$181,525
Other Grants	$1,616,610
Value of Donated Food Received	$124,371,598
Investments	$753,882
Fees and Service Charges	$2,001,868
Other Revenue	$206,914