
March 29, 2023
Our network partners’ connection to the community gives voice to our neighbors’ needs. Learning more about our partner pantries, shelters, and soup kitchens through feedback loops helps us to understand what to prioritize and where to focus our resources. Take a look at the results of our 2021 Network Opportunity Survey (distributed from August – October of 2021), what we learned, our response to your needs and plans for what’s coming next.
By the numbers:
526
surveys sent
295
responses
11
counties represented
50 %
percent response rate
#1 Priority: Increase the number of people pantries can serve
Top 6 things we heard our partners
need & want:
What we’re doing and
what’s coming:
What we know is important to neighbor needs
- Integrated programs, such as benefit referrals and assistance, provide neighbors access to health and resource benefits that will help them to save money and support their families.
-
- 52% have low to no levels of benefit assistance (I.e., SNAP).
- 69% have low to no levels of Nutrition Education, such as SNAP-ED.
- CFBNJ has identified expanding partner & neighbor participation in programming as a strategic priority. We plan to provide more opportunities to pair food, education and resource access services to help our partners fill gaps where they have few benefit assistance or nutrition education programming.
- Client Choice models encourage partners to distribute food to neighbors in a dignified way, providing food choice to maintain a healthy lifestyle and a reduced stigma around food insecurity.
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- 12% of the network currently use a supermarket style, client choice set-up.
- We will support growth of Client Choice and Innovative Projects
- Our FY23 Network Investment Capacity Grants (applications opening Spring, 2023) will provide $5.2M in funding for large projects such as projects that support and enhance services that promote dignity and access to nutritious foods, such as adoption/expansion of healthy pantry/client choice models.