City and County of Denver, CO

01/07/2025 | Press release | Archived content

Denver Awards $14.7 Million to Reduce Childhood Food Insecurity

Denver Awards $14.7 Million to Reduce Childhood Food Insecurity

Published on January 07, 2025

Nearly $30 million dedicated to reducing childhood food insecurity will be heading to community-based organizations over the next two years thanks to the Denver Department of Public Health & Environment's Healthy Food for Denver's Kids (HFDK) program.

Made possible by a 2018 Denver ballot initiative, 16 new grants have been awarded for the 2024 grant cycle and a new funding opportunity is opening up for the 2025 grant cycle.

Funding Available in 2025

Up to $15 million is available for programs, projects and activities that improve child nutrition security through healthy food access, food education, and supports for federal nutrition assistance programs. Open to community-based nonprofits, public schools, and City and County of Denver agencies through January 28, this is the sixth annual funding opportunity for the HFDK program. HFDK anticipates funding up to 15 proposals in 2025, which are approved annually by the HDFK Commission.

Projects funded in 2025 will focus on increasing access to nutritious and culturally responsive food and beverages, increasing participation in Federal Nutrition Assistance programs, and increasing access to food education and food skills. Program focus must be for youth 18 years and younger and their families.

Organizations may apply for HFDK funding by completing an eligibility form and a letter of interest (LOI) through the Submittable platform by January 28 at 11:59 pm MT.

2024 Awards

The current funding opportunity comes as last year's grantees (cohort 5) and Newcomer Micro-grantees are announced. In 2024, HFDK distributed the fifth round of annual funding to projects centered around the provision of healthy food to youth of all ages (0-18) through food pantries, meal and snack programs, grocery boxes and connecting families with federal nutrition assistance programs like SNAP and WIC.

Cohort 5 organizations are also educating and empowering youth and their families through food justice and leadership curriculum, cooking classes, and teaching in gardens and urban farms.

The total amount awarded to the fifth annual cohort of grantees is approximately $14.1 million. The average size of each grant is around $880,000 for a contract term of three years (2024-2027).

Awarded organizations include:

  • Boys & Girls Clubs of Denver Metro
  • Colorado League of Charter Schools
  • Commún
  • Denver Inner City Parish
  • Denver Public Safety Youth Programs
  • Denver Public Schools (Career and Technical Education, Career and College Success)
  • Early Excellence Program of Denver
  • Ekar Farm
  • Jovial Concepts
  • Montbello Organizing Committee
  • Sewall Child Development Center, Inc.
  • Spirit of the Sun
  • Stedman Elementary School
  • Urban Peak Denver
  • Urban Symbiosis
  • Vista Academy

Additionally, HFDK funded micro-grantees who are specifically focused on addressing food insecurity in newcomer youth, predominantly from Latin America. Micro-grantee projects will address food access in newcomer youth through food boxes, food pantries, and serving prepared meals and snacks. The total amount awarded is approximately $585,000, and the average size of each micro-grant is around $49,000 for a one-year contract (August 2024- August 2025).

Awarded organizations include:

  • Catholic Charities Archdiocese of Denver
  • Denver South Giving Grocery, a program of South High School PTSA
  • Denver Public Schools Family and Community Engagement (FACE) Community Hubs
  • East Colfax Community Collective
  • Florence Crittenton Services
  • Lord's Daily Bread
  • Masjid Al-Shuhada (dba Downtown Denver Islamic Center)
  • Pascual LeDoux Academy
  • Sisters of Color United for Education
  • The LoVVe Project
  • Village Exchange Center
  • West High School Food Bank

Extensive Community Impact

Since the launch of HFDK in 2019, approximately $85 million has been awarded to more than 100 organizations that include non-profits, public schools or affiliates of Denver Public Schools, and city agencies.

From August 2023 to July 2024 alone, HFDK grantees provided a total of 6,566,394 meals and 2,430,245 snacks to children, while also distributing 7,950,352 pounds of food to families and 3,799,619 pounds to partner organizations for redistribution. Read more about HFDK's impact in the latest report to Denver City Council.

Learn more about the program and find future funding opportunities at Denvergov.org/HealthyFoodforDenversKids.