| Formation | 1986 |
|---|---|
| Type | Nonprofit |
| Location |
|
Region served | Philadelphia |
| Services | Food bank |
Executive Director | George Matysik |
Chief Program Officer | Steve Preston |
| Affiliations |
|
| Website | www.sharefoodprogram.org |
Share Food Program is a social services organization working for hunger relief in the Philadelphia region of Pennsylvania, United States. [1] It serves as a food bank to the communities in accordance with USDA civil rights regulations and feeds more than 1 million people each month in Philadelphia and the suburbs. [2] Share Food Program is the largest hunger-relief agency in the Greater Philadelphia area. [3]
Share Food Program was founded in 1986 as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, focused on increasing access to low-cost food in Philadelphia, using a food co-operative model. Beginning in 1991, it expanded its operations to fight hunger, by getting food to people in need throughout the city. [4] [5]
During the COVID-19 outbreak that began in March 2020, the organization partnered with SEAMAAC, a Philadelphia-based non-profit to distribute 1,000 meals and food boxes a day since mid-May 2020. [6] In October 2020, it received grant from William Penn Foundation [7] and, along with other donations, was able to give away 10 million pounds of food. [8]
In January 2021, State Senator Vincent Hughes presented state funding to the Share Food Program for warehouse maintenance. [9] On the National Day of Service, over 100 volunteers participated to distribute food to seniors’ programs and families in need. [10] In February 2021, the organization received a grant from Dunkin Joy in Childhood Foundation. [11]
In 2023, Share had raised $28M of a $35M goal to upgrade its food distribution warehouse on West Hunting Park Ave in North Philadelphia. [12]
Share Food Program distributes food to 1 million needy people each month, [1] over 50% of whom are children, and 12% of whom are seniors or people with disabilities. It also serves 305,000 children through the national school lunch and breakfast program to 69 regional districts in Philadelphia. [13] [4] The food comes from government partners, supermarkets, wholesalers, restaurants, farms and food drives. [5]
The organization partners with 150 pantries around Philadelphia as part of its Partner Pantries program. Other programs include food relief, MontCo Hunger Solutions, Nice Roots farm and home deliveries. [10] It also partners with DoorDash, delivering 4,500 boxes of food a month in 2024. In about two hours, more than 500 of 32-pound boxes of food are dispatched to low-income area seniors in need in Philadelphia area counties via DoorDash. [14]