SECOND HARVEST HEARTLAND FOOD BANK - GREATER TWIN CITIES REGION, MN

MODELING MEAL DISTRIBUTION IN SOUTHEAST MINNESOTA AND NATIONALLY

PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT | 2021 - 2022

In partnership with Second Harvest Heartland’s Minnesota Central Kitchen (MCK), now known as Kitchen Coalition, and Channel One Regional Food Bank (C1) and funded by a Feeding America Boundless Collaboration grant, Food Works Group (FWG) directed a set of pilot programs to assess the efficacy of scaling the Twin Cities-area MCK prepared meals program to Southeast Minnesota and to support replication nationally. FWG assessed the successes of MCK in the Twin Cities, developed a model tailored for Southeast MN, and launched a pilot project for C1, including sub-pilots in urban, rural, and remote regions of their fourteen-county service area. By the end of 2021, MCK had worked with over 100 partners to nourish the Twin Cities community through more than 2 million meals. Additionally, FWG created a toolkit for Feeding America to support replication and scale-up of these models across the country. FWG also supported a successful $800,000 phase 2 capital raise for MCK expansion. C1 was the first Boundless Collaboration grantee to move from planning phase to implementation phase. See press coverage here.

MINNESOTA CENTRAL KITCHEN: OPERATIONS AND PLANNING FOR COVID-19 RELIEF (FOOD RESCUE, RE-EMPLOYMENT, AND MEAL DISTRIBUTION)

OPERATIONS PLANNING | 2020 - 2021

Guided by the pillars of re-employment, food rescue, and hunger relief, Food Works Group’s Emily Paul directed Minnesota Central Kitchen’s (now known as Kitchen Coalition) efforts to optimize their operations and planning during the COVID-19 public health emergency. In the face of supply chain uncertainties, this effort helped bridge the gaps between producers and consumers, eliminating waste and increasing meal quality for those most at risk. As of March 2021, the program had delivered more than 1.4 million meals in partnership with 14 kitchens and food service partners, rescuing more than 1.6 million pounds of food for meal-preparation efforts and re-employing 200+ hospitality workers.