- Partnership enrolls 300 households and delivers a total of 8,525 meals in the first 6 weeks.
- Program participants receive a monthly box of healthy, shelf-stable groceries via contactless delivery directly to their homes.
- All groceries and delivery are free of charge.
Austin, TX (July 22, 2021) – The Central Texas Food Bank has partnered with the Austin Public Health Neighborhood Services Unit and Amazon on a new home delivery program, which will provide families with children and adults 60+ with a monthly box of healthy, shelf-stable groceries, delivered directly to their homes. Launched as a pilot program on June 1, the service delivers a box with enough food for 25 meals. All groceries are free, with Amazon donating delivery services through their Amazon Flex transportation network, who make contactless deliveries directly to clients’ homes. Austin Public Health provides caseload management, screening and participant enrollment.
“One in seven Central Texans face food insecurity. Unfortunately, many of our neighbors in need simply aren’t able to get out to our food distribution sites,” said Derrick Chubbs, president and CEO of the Central Texas Food Bank. “That’s why we’re so excited to partner with Austin Public Health Neighborhood Services Unit and Amazon on this home delivery program. This is another great example of how we can work together as a community to fight hunger.”
The program, currently running through the end of 2021, is open to Travis County households with children and households with adults ages 60 or older who are in need of food assistance and experiencing barriers to attending in-person food distributions. Once enrolled, participants will receive a recurring monthly food box with approximately 30 pounds of healthy shelf-stable groceries such as oatmeal, pasta, corn flour, dried beans, canned protein, and canned fruits and vegetables delivered directly to their doorstep by Amazon. The program is designed to be scalable. The three partners hope to expand it in the future by extending food delivery to veterans and people with disabilities, and increasing the number of delivery days.
“Central Texas Food Bank works hard to ensure vulnerable groups have enough food to thrive,” said Bettina Stix, Amazon’s director of Right Now Needs and Disaster Relief. “We are happy to support our community partner by utilizing our logistics and delivery capabilities to help accelerate their mission-critical work to feed families facing food insecurity in the Austin region.”
The goal of the home delivery program is to serve more people in need by increasing the accessibility of food assistance for underserved households. During its first six weeks, the program enrolled 300 households and delivered a total of 8,525 meals.
Since March 2020, Amazon has supported food banks and community organizations with free, contactless delivery of groceries and pre-packaged meals directly to the doorsteps of vulnerable groups. Using Amazon’s network of delivery service partners around the world, deliveries now total more than 12 million meals to underserved families, vulnerable seniors, and school children in more than 25 U.S. cities and in communities across Australia, Japan, Singapore, Spain, and the U.K.
“Our Neighborhood Services Unit has worked tirelessly to ensure local families in need of food assistance can find the help they need,” said Adrienne Sturrup, Austin Public Health Interim Director. “Through our new partnership with the Central Texas Food Bank and Amazon, we are able to provide additional opportunities to expand food access to those who need it most and continue to reduce the barriers to accessing essential services.”
Participating households must live in Travis County, be in need of food assistance, and be experiencing barriers to attending in-person food distributions. To determine eligibility and/or enroll in the program, go to centraltexasfoodbank.org/home-delivery-program or contact the nearest Neighborhood Center from the list below.
Rosewood Zaragosa Neighborhood Center
Central East Austin
2800 Webberville Road
512-972-6740
South Austin Neighborhood Center
South Austin
2508 Durwood Street
512-972-6840
St. John Community Center
Northeast Austin
7500 Blessing Avenue
512-972-5159
East Austin Neighborhood Center
East Austin
211 Comal Street
512-972-6650
Montopolis Community Center
Southeast Austin
1200 Montopolis Drive
512-972-6705
Blackland Neighborhood Center
Central East Austin
2005 Salina Street
512-972-5790
Once enrolled, participants will be signed up for a recurring monthly food box delivery. While the exact contents may vary, each box will weigh approximately 30 pounds and contain healthy shelf-stable groceries such as oatmeal, pasta, corn flour, dried beans, canned protein, and canned fruits and vegetables. The box will be distributed directly to the participant’s doorstep by Amazon each month via contactless delivery. Participants can choose to un-enroll in the program at any time. For those in need of food assistance who don’t qualify for this program, the Food Bank has a proxy policy that allows clients to send someone to get food on their behalf.
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For Media: Photos of the home delivery program in action can be found here.
ABOUT THE CENTRAL TEXAS FOOD BANK
The mission of Central Texas Food Bank is to nourish hungry people and lead the community in the fight against hunger. Founded in 1981, the Food Bank provides food and grocery products through a network of nearly 300 Partner Agencies and nutrition programs, serving nearly 75,000 people every week. Headquartered in Austin, the Food Bank serves 21 counties in Central Texas, an area about twice the size of Massachusetts. For more information on the Food Bank and its programs, visit www.centraltexasfoodbank.org.
ABOUT AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH
Austin Public Health is the health department for the City of Austin and Travis County. Austin Public Health works to prevent disease, promote health and protect the well-being of all by monitoring and preventing infectious diseases and environmental threats and educating about the benefits of preventative behaviors to avoid chronic diseases and improve health outcomes.
MEDIA CONTACTS:
Paul Gaither
Director of Marketing & Communications, Central Texas Food Bank
Phone: 512-684-2528
Cell: 512-550-9030
pgaither@centraltexasfoodbank.org
Amazon.com, Inc.
Amazon-pr@amazon.com
Jen Samp
Public Information & Marketing Manager, Austin Public Health
Phone: 512-972-6115
Jen.samp@austintexas.gov
