Food is a basic human right. In Quin Rivers’ service area, 8.8% of our population lives at or below the federal poverty level…and potentially experiences hunger on a daily basis.

The goal of Quin Rivers’ Community Food Program is to strengthen the capacity of local food delivery organizations to serve these people in need. Capacity is increased through the embellishment (more and more healthy foods) of existing pantries and the establishment of new ones. Additional capacity comes through increased access to (more “open” hours) and awareness of a County’s food network. Food pantries have historically distributed little to no fresh foods. With a focus on nutrition, Quin Rivers’ supports pantries who want to start community gardens with the purpose of enhancing their pantry food offerings and coordinates with local experts for the delivery of nutrition workshops.

Quin Rivers’ Community Food Program was established in 2009 to provide those who needed food with access to it, and to provide pantries with sources of fresh produce and additional food. To date we’ve networked with 11 pantries to support their needs through food distribution and facilitated the start-up of a mobile pantry and currently working to bring on line 2 new pantries; the program has established 10 community gardens, and delivered 12 workshops on establishing community gardens and container gardens. Our current focus is delivering those services to Charles City, Hanover, and New Kent Counties.