Capital Area Food Bank
Together we can solve hunger
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
In the Washington metro region today, nearly half a million people are food insecure, meaning that at points throughout the year, they’re uncertain as to where their next meal will come from. A third of those people are children. Hunger's impacts are devastating. From developmental challenges and school absences in children to diet-related disease, lower productivity and reduced workforce readiness in adults, hunger's impacts are wide-ranging and significant. Hunger undermines a strong society, a strong economy, and individual human potential.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Family Markets
We provide families with fresh fruits, vegetables and non-perishable healthy groceries each month in their children’s schools. Food is offered market-style, and parents can choose the items they want, along with recipes to put ingredients to use. We distributed 1.4 million meals in FY18, serving 3,600 households a month at 44 sites.
After School Meals
We provide free, healthy meals and snacks to students attending after school enrichment programs. In FY18, we distributed 316,000 meals to children at 136 sites.
Weekend Bag
We provide weekly, kid-friendly bags of groceries for children to ensure they have enough to eat when not at school. In FY18, we distributed 225,000 meals to children at 19 sites.
Hunger Lifeline
The Hunger Lifeline provides immediate emergency food referrals to individuals suffering from hunger. Clients are referred for services directly to partner agencies in their neighborhood.
Mobile Market
We provide fruits, vegetables, bread, and more at no cost to any resident living in a high-need neighborhood, by delivering to safe, public places for pick-up. In FY18, we distributed 4.4 million meals at 83 sites.
Community Marketplace
At this monthly farmer’s market-inspired event, we offer fresh, seasonal produce at no cost; cooking demonstrations and on-site resources for health, housing, and other services. We distributed 300,000 meals in FY18, serving 750 households a month at three sites.
Senior Brown Bag
We provide income-qualified seniors with a bag of groceries each month, along with recipes and nutrition education materials. We distributed 683,000 meals in FY18, serving 4,500 seniors a month at 90 sites.
Grocery Plus
We provide eligible DC seniors with a bag of healthy groceries each month. In the summer, seniors also receive produce vouchers redeemable at participating farmer’s markets. We distributed 1.5 million meals in FY18, serving 5,000 seniors per month at 76 sites.
Kids Summer Meals
We provide healthy meals and snacks in the summer at sites that include faith-based organizations, camps, and recreation centers. In FY18, we distributed 27,000 meals to children at 136 sites.
Face Hunger
Face Hunger™ is a hands-on simulation and discussion activity that raises awareness and understanding of hunger. It’s a meaningful way to kick off any food drive or donation campaign and a great addition to the volunteer experience at the Capital Area Food Bank.
Partner Direct
Partner Direct connects partner agencies to local food donors, including grocers and other retailers, when the food bank is unable to make direct pick-ups.
Fresh Produce Grant
The Fresh Produce Grant is a farm share partnership between the food bank and Clagett Farm in Upper Marlboro, MD. Recipient partner agencies receive seasonal fresh produce and nutrition education for their agencies during the growing season.
Where we work
External reviews
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
Each day the CAFB strives to fill in the gaps in the hunger safety net intended to support the residences of the Washington Metropolitan Area. In conjunction with its more than 444 partner agencies the CAFB seeks to contribute to the health and wellness of the community by increasing the accessibility of nutritious food, reducing food waste in the area, and educating the community on hunger issues and how to solve them.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
Since 1980, the Capital Area Food Bank has existed to help solve the problem of hunger in our region. Working with hundreds of retail grocers, manufacturers, and local growers, along with thousands of donors, we distribute nearly 40 million pounds of food to those in need each year through a network of over 450 regional nonprofit partners. Through this network, we reach hundreds of thousands of people with critical meals.
sIn an effort to strengthen the foundation of the Greater Washington Area's food resource proponents, the CAFB will group partners of like size, or like service programs, to allow for better alignment of food distribution and services and use our food and training tools to accelerate partner work on literacy, job training, health, and other root causes of hunger.
Additionally, the CAFB endeavors to contribute to the health and wellness of its patrons by reducing the proportion of foods we are collecting, purchasing, and distributing containing excessive amounts sodium and added sugar, while maintaining our commitment to fruits and vegetables of all kinds including fresh, frozen, and canned.
Lastly, the CAFB seeks to combat the growing food waste in the Greater Washington Area by expanding back-of-store pickup from retailers and the developing partnerships with fruit and vegetable growers, and organizations such as the Gleaners, to collect and distribute surplus and cosmetically imperfect crops that might otherwise be wasted.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
The Capital Area Food Bank contributes to more than 500 food assistance partners and direct service programs. These collaborations afford the CAFB the access and influence needed to reach the demographics most heavily affected by hunger. By equipping its partners with the tools needed to educate their patrons such as recipe cards denoting healthy ways to prepare the provided foods and monthly trainings in food safety, food growing, and hunger awareness the CAFB is able to take a hands on approach to seeing that its mission is realized in the community.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
Over four decades, we have consistently grown the quantity of the food we provide for our neighbors in need, and in more recent years, have also worked to improve the nutritional quality of what we distribute. We have increased our efficiency year over year and become increasingly innovative in how we deliver food and specific in targeting area most in need.
But even as we have improved upon our model, a gnawing issue remains: hunger continues to be with us. While improvements in the system have helped to alleviate it, we have been asking hard questions as we look to the next phase of our evolution: how can we continue to deliver the food that is critical today while also contributing to an end to food insecurity tomorrow? How can we help to prevent the child who attends our after-school meals program at 10 from still needing our services when she is a 30- year-old mother or a 70 year-old grandmother?
Food can be a powerful catalyst for change and more inclusive economic growth, and our next stage of work will seek to harness that power. By bundling food with other partner-provided services – like workforce development, financial literacy, and other key tools of economic empowerment – we will focus on creating bridges that enable people to move from reliance on food that is free, to food that is affordable, to participating as traditional consumers in the marketplace. The sustainable outcomes towards which we are driving – children who can better focus in school; a stronger, healthier adult workforce; seniors aging with dignity, among many others –benefit every member of our region and our broader society.
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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Capital Area Food Bank
Board of directorsas of 12/21/2018
Mr. Peter Schnall
Carl L. Vacketta
DLA Piper
John Huffman, Treasurer
Community Advocate
Amy Celep, Secretary
Community Wealth Partners
Greg Bingham
The Kenrich Group LLC
Denise Dombay, Vice Chair
Community Advocate
Adam Goldberg
Trident Advisors, P LLC
Felecia Love Greer, Esq.
Pepco Holdings, Inc.
John P. Hynes, Jr.
Engility Corp.
George A. Jones
Bread for the City Inc.
Gordon Reid
Giant LLC
Johnny A. Yataco
Washington Hispanic
Eric Eisenberg, General Counsel
DLA Piper
Rev. Dr. Michael E. Bell, Sr.
Allen Chapel AME Church
Larry Hentz, CBEP
Employ Prince George's, Inc.
Tom Lofland
Albertsons/Safeway
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes