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Thank you for joining our efforts to end food insecurity in New Jersey. Together, we can make a difference in the lives of our neighbors in need.

There are many ways to make change happen.

Learn

Understand the current landscape of food insecurity and the public programs that address it.

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Let our lawmakers and community know you support our work.

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Check out the many ways you can give your time.

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Your generosity makes a critical difference in the work we do.

Connect With Legislators

Learn To Be An Advocate

Programs at the federal, state, and local levels protect our communities from hunger. It’s important to learn more about how they work, how they are funded, and to hear about our neighbors’ experiences with food insecurity in their own words.

Hunger By The Numbers

0

of New Jerseyans are food insecure.

0

of children in NJ are food insecure.

0

of Atlantic, Cape May, and Cumberland county residents face hunger.

0

of kids in South Jersey face hunger.

0

is the poverty level for a family of 4.

0

is the minimum SNAP benefit.

SNAP

SNAP (formerly Food Stamps) serves more than 800,000 people in New Jersey and is the first line of defense against hunger for families, seniors, and adults with disabilities who have low incomes. SNAP works as a debit card that can only be used to buy food.

WIC

WIC (Women, Infants, Children) is a federal feeding program. It gives families with young children cash value cards to use when shopping for important healthy foods and offers nutrition information and other services.

National School Meal Program

Providing 395,000 children in New Jersey with free lunch and breakfast, the National School Meal Program ensures that they have enough nutrition during the school day to learn. It is available in most public schools, as well as many non-profit private and  parochial schools.

Common Myths About Government Programs

MYTH

People who use these programs may not really need them.

FACT

Poverty in the U.S. is widespread: The Federal Reserve recently reported that 39 percent of Americans do not have enough savings to cover a $400 emergency and that about two-thirds of Americans between the ages of 20 and 65 will use one of these programs for at least a year.

MYTH

These programs are wasteful and give money to lazy people, undocumented people, or people who don’t really need help.

FACT

Poverty particularly affects seniors, people with disabilities, and children. It is estimated that half of all American children will have received SNAP benefits by the time they reach age 18. More than 75% of households receiving SNAP have at least one child, senior, and/or disabled person living there.

MYTH

The federal poverty levels are a measure of modern-day finances.

FACT

The way poverty is measured hasn’t changed since 1969 and is only adjusted annually for inflation.

How Does a Food Bank Work

How Food Gets to Pantries, Soup Kitchens, and Shelters

Our FoodBank is a complex storage and distribution system. It allows a river of food to flow efficiently through loading docks, onto trucks, and out into communities. Our warehouses provide safe storage, while the food finds its way to soup kitchens, food pantries, shelters and feeding programs around the state. Because we know what food they need and when they need it, we are able to marshal our resources to provide it in the most cost-effective way possible, to the people who need it most. Our food sourcing experts take advantage of economies of scale, bulk-purchasing power, and relationships with retailers, food producers and packagers who donate surplus, close-dated, and mispackaged but perfectly good food.

More About Our Solutions to Hunger

We also act as a contractor for the State and Federal Government, administering their food purchasing programs and distributing the commodity supplemental food they package and supply, and through our national parent organization, Feeding America^®, we participate in an inter-food bank exchange that allows each food bank to balance inventory, sending a surplus of corn, say, in one direction, and getting a needed shipment of pasta in return.

Finally, food banking reduces food waste. Last year, the Feeding America^® network rescued 3.3 billion pounds of good food, which would otherwise end up in landfills. The bottom line? It costs us one dollar to provide one person with a healthy, balanced diet for an entire day.

Stay Informed About The Community FoodBank Of New Jersey

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How Are Nutrition Programs Funded?

The benefit portion of these programs are primarily funded by the federal government. The state contributes to administering SNAP and also contributes toward the cost of school meals.

Current Legislation

Understanding the Farm Bill

Food distribution by CFBNJ, our fellow New Jersey food banks, and our network of community partners (soup kitchens, food pantries, after-school and summer feeding programs, etc.) can meet only a small portion of the need of nearly 1 million of our neighbors facing food insecurity here in New Jersey.

The Farm Bill, passed every five years by Congress, contains funding for nutritional programs that are of critical importance to vulnerable families, seniors, and adults with disabilities. Making sure that Congress passes the strongest possible bill to provide funding for SNAP is a crucial advocacy priority.

Here are our priorities for the upcoming Farm Bill.

SNAP

Protect, strengthen and expand SNAP, simplify the SNAP application process and maintain all  state flexibilities.

TEFAP (The Emergency Food Assistance Program)

Provide $350 million per year for TEFAP and $100 million a year for TEFAP storage and distribution to ensure adequate food for emergency food charities across the country.

FARM BILL PRIORITIES

Our Neighbors' Stories

What They’re Not Telling You About SNAP Changes

What They’re Not Telling You About SNAP Changes https://cfbnj.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/EM-SNAP.jpg 1280 550 CFBNJ CFBNJ https://cfbnj.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/EM-SNAP.jpg July 2, 2025 July 2, 2025

Elizabeth McCarthy, President & CEO As leader of New Jersey’s largest anti-hunger, anti-poverty organization, I hear often from parents who are doing everything right — but still coming up short. I’m a mom, too, and I know how it feels to want nothing more than to keep your child fed, healthy, and safe. Out in…

How SNAP cuts would reshape food sourcing for New Jersey’s food banks

How SNAP cuts would reshape food sourcing for New Jersey’s food banks https://cfbnj.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Michael-SNAP.jpg 1280 550 CFBNJ CFBNJ https://cfbnj.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Michael-SNAP.jpg July 2, 2025 July 2, 2025

Michael Schrob, Director, Food Sourcing & Procurement As Director of Food Sourcing and Procurement at CFBNJ, I manage the acquisition of food from three main sources: purchased products through grants and private financial donations, government programs, and food donations from NJ retailers, food industry donors, and local farms. When SNAP changes, more families will turn…

The ripple effects you don’t see: How SNAP cuts will strain every community resource

The ripple effects you don’t see: How SNAP cuts will strain every community resource https://cfbnj.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Danielle-SNAP.jpg 1280 550 CFBNJ CFBNJ https://cfbnj.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Danielle-SNAP.jpg July 2, 2025 July 2, 2025

Danielle McNair, Assistant Director, Partner Experience As Assistant Director of Partner Experience at the Community FoodBank of New Jersey, I work with 21 high-impact community organizations across New Jersey – food pantries and local food assistance organizations that serve our neighbors every day. When SNAP benefits get cut, the impact doesn’t stop with individual families.…

SNAP cuts would impact critical programs and harm working families

SNAP cuts would impact critical programs and harm working families https://cfbnj.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Robert-SNAP.jpg 1280 550 CFBNJ CFBNJ https://cfbnj.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Robert-SNAP.jpg July 2, 2025 July 2, 2025

Robert Abbamondi, Assistant Director, Neighbor Impact As Assistant Director of Neighbor Impact at the Community FoodBank of New Jersey, I work directly with families across South Jersey who depend on these programs. Atlantic, Cape May, and Cumberland Counties, where my team and I help neighbors seeking SNAP benefits, face unique challenges and have some of…

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Join Our Movement & Make a Difference

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Hunger By The Numbers

SNAP

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National School Meal Program

Common Myths About Government Programs

MYTH

FACT

MYTH

FACT

MYTH

FACT

How Does a Food Bank Work

How Food Gets to Pantries, Soup Kitchens, and Shelters

More About Our Solutions to Hunger

Stay Informed About The Community FoodBank Of New Jersey

How Are Nutrition Programs Funded?

Current Legislation

Understanding the Farm Bill

Here are our priorities for the upcoming Farm Bill.

SNAP

TEFAP (The Emergency Food Assistance Program)

Our Neighbors' Stories

What They’re Not Telling You About SNAP Changes

How SNAP cuts would reshape food sourcing for New Jersey’s food banks

The ripple effects you don’t see: How SNAP cuts will strain every community resource

SNAP cuts would impact critical programs and harm working families

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Join Our Movement
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