Food for Youth & College Students
The Community FoodBank of New Jersey fills the nutrition gap for kids and young adults by providing healthy food year-round and outside school hours.
Our Food for Youth and College Students programs are Kids Cafes, Family Packs, Summer Nutrition, and College Food pantries. Your organization could make a huge difference in the everyday lives of these young neighbors.
Kids Cafes
Kids Cafes provide nourishing after-school meals daily so children do not go home to sleep on empty stomachs. The program, which also includes a nutrition education component aimed at teaching students about well-balanced diets, currently serves more than two dozen sites across the state. Last year, CFBNJ delivered 180,000 Kids Cafe meals.
“My brother and sister and I love coming here…We really like the food.”
DAVID, AGE 8, BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF LODI
Family Packs
Family Packs provide households with supplemental boxes of fresh produce and shelf-stable food for the weekend. Last year, CFBNJ supplied 93,000 Family Packs.
“I love the different fruits we get that I can share with my family. That’s my favorite part about the Family Packs,”
NEYMAR, AGE 7.
Summer Nutrition
For kids who receive free or reduced-price school meals and after-school dinners at our Kids Cafes, summer vacation can mean an end to a reliable food source. In order to bridge the gap, we serve breakfast and lunch to children in need at sites across the state, including Boys & Girls Clubs, recreation centers, and libraries through the USDA’s Summer Food Service Program (SFSP).
Summer Meal Sites
Head to our blog for more information about how to get summer meals for children. Please check individual sites for opening dates and times as well as meals provided.
Our Child Nutrition Programs are possible due to the support from ACME Markets Foundation, ADP Foundation, Bayer Fund, BJs Charitable Foundation, Capital One Bank, Chick-fil-A, C&S Wholesale Grocers, Devils Youth Foundation, Dunkin Joy in Childhood Foundation, Morgan Stanley Foundation, PNC Foundation, Popeyes Foundation, Stop & Shop Family Foundation, Turrell Fund, and Wawa Foundation.
“My birthday is coming up…I want to eat a lot so I can grow up big and strong.”
JAMES, AGE 6, BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF LODI
College Food Pantries
College food pantries are on-campus initiatives that provide a lifeline for students who may be struggling to make ends meet, ensuring they have access to nutritious food and can focus on their studies without the added stress of hunger. These pantries are stocked with non-perishable items like canned goods, pasta, and cereal, as well as fresh produce and other perishable items when available. Some schools also offer meal swipes or vouchers for use at campus dining halls. Our Resource Access and Nutrition Education programs connect students with nutrition education and help determine their eligibility for SNAP (formerly food stamps) benefits. Last year, CFBNJ worked with 14 campus pantries, distributing 270,000 pounds of healthy food.
The benefits of college food pantries are clear. They provide a lifeline for students who may be struggling to make ends meet, ensuring they have access to nutritious food and can focus on their studies without the added stress of hunger. Additionally, college food pantries can help to break down the stigma surrounding food insecurity.
We welcome university and college representatives to reach out to us to learn next steps for becoming a partner pantry of CFBNJ.
Expand Your Capacity
While college food pantries are an important resource for students, it’s important to note that they are not a long-term solution to food insecurity. Addressing the root causes of hunger—such as poverty and income inequality—requires systemic change. However, by providing immediate relief and creating a culture of support, college food pantries can help to break the cycle of hunger and create a brighter future for all students.
Similarly, our child nutrition programs may not be necessary for every single child in New Jersey, but it is a life-changing program for others. That’s who we do it for. Our feeding children initiatives and the College Food Pantry program play a massive part in solving the food-insecurity issue within our state.
If your organization wants to learn more about any of these particular programs, reach out to our Resource Access Lead, Meghan Gosselink. All you have to do is fill out our contact form and clarify that you’re looking to speak with Meghan. We can get you additional information and help answer any further questions you may have about implementing this program at your pantry.
Contact Programs
Fill out the form below to contact our team.