Boston Foundation Pledges $1.5M in Grants to Help Fight Hunger in Massachusetts

The Boston Foundation announced on Tuesday, Aug. 5, that it would grant $1 million to the Greater Boston Food Bank and $500,000 to other food organizations in the Boston area to combat food insecurity in the face of federal funding cuts.

The Foundation's grant marks the beginning of the organization's "Meeting the Moment: Sustaining Families" initiative. This program will distribute money to organizations throughout Eastern Massachusetts. Its goal is to fill the gaps created by reductions in food benefits and nutrition programs under President Trump's administration.

In Massachusetts alone, more than one in six residents receive SNAP benefits. According to the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities, a Washington think tank, approximately 104,000 people face losing their SNAP benefits under new legislation.

According to a Boston Globe report, the Greater Boston Food Bank will apply the $1 million grant toward maintaining its food assistance operation, buying food, and distributing food to its 600 agency partners across Eastern Massachusetts, according to the food bank's spokesperson.

In a statement made to the Boston Globe, Lee Pelton, the Boston Foundation's president and chief executive, said that philanthropic organizations cannot by themselves address gaps in funding created by federal cuts. However, the Foundation aims to engage with additional nonprofit partners to isolate and address the origins of hunger in the state through community feedback and research.

The Boston Foundation noted that it intends to distribute multimillion-dollar grants in the future as it broadens its relationships with donors and partners in the Massachusetts food system, but no time frame was provided.