The Chattanooga Area Food Bank and the Bethlehem Center are the recipients of a $250,000 grant from Feeding America's Food Security Equity Impact Fund, which aims to improve food security in communities of color that are disproportionately affected by hunger.
"Research shows that people of color experience food insecurity at rates two to three times higher than that of white individuals," Chattanooga Area Food Bank Director of Community Engagement Jennifer Fritts said by phone. "This particular grant is focused on really addressing those root causes of hunger and food insecurity and focused on those communities of color."
To receive a Food Security Impact Fund grant, Feeding America network members such as the Chattanooga Area Food Bank were required to partner with community-based organizations led by and serving people of color.
At least 85% of the grant funds must go to the community-based organization, with the goal of driving resources to organizations with historical barriers to funding access, according to the Feeding America website.
"We are happy to be a proud supporter of the work that the Beth is doing and to be able to offer this to them, but really, they are the ones doing the hard work of rallying their community members to become food system leaders," Fritts said.
The Bethlehem Center was already partnering with the food bank as well as the Partnership for Families, Children and Adults to operate an on-site food pantry. Reggie Smith, the center's executive director, realized the pantry wasn't doing enough to address food insecurity in the area and was already working to address the underlying causes.
"It was a Band-Aid rather than looking for solutions," Smith said by phone.
With the grant funding, Smith and a team of community members are leading a comprehensive planning process to address the root causes of food insecurity in communities of color in Chattanooga.
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Starting in January, a minimum of eight community listening sessions will be held in multiple areas of the city identified as food insecure, Smith said.
The Bethlehem Center team will survey the community about issues related to food insecurity that fall under five categories: affordability, accessibility, availability, accommodation and acceptability.
"We're trying to identify and understand what barriers exist to build a plan to address food insecurity gaps," Smith said.
City Farms Grower Coalition, which operates a full farm at the Bethlehem Center, is an outside contractor that's also working with the center to address systemic inequalities that contribute to food insecurity, he said.
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The team from the Bethlehem Center will use the feedback from the surveys and listening sessions to develop a detailed report that identifies barriers to access in local food deserts, which are defined as urban areas that have limited access to affordable or good quality fresh food.
The grant also will fund the creation of a professional documentary to outline the planning process, which Smith said he hopes will serve as a model for other communities.
Once the planning phase is complete later this year, the food bank and Bethlehem Center will be eligible to apply for another Food Security Equity Impact Fund grant of up to $500,000 to implement the plan, Smith said.
Contact Emily Crisman at ecrisman@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6508.