When you think of Vermont Foodbank’s partners, who comes to mind?

You may first think of local food shelves across the state, where any of us can pick up groceries when budgets are too tight. And you’re right! Many of Vermont’s food shelves are Foodbank partners that we support with food, guidance, trainings, and more. But in addition to food shelves, many kinds of community partners make it possible to share nourishing food with communities across Vermont. You are probably familiar with many of them!

So where else does all the food go? Our food distribution partners include:

• Food shelves
• Meal sites
• Shelters
• Schools
• Hospitals and healthcare centers
• Housing sites

These partnerships work a few different ways. Vermont Foodbank delivers food to food shelves, meal sites, and shelters for them to distribute. We work with schools that run school food pantries in a similar way, but the support is tailored to students and families. Hospital and healthcare partners, meanwhile, serve as host sites for the Foodbank to run produce distribution events. The Foodbank works with housing site partners to deliver fresh food right to people at home, including older adults and people with disabilities.

Some community partners are large organizations providing multiple services. Others are singularly focused on food access and are primarily volunteer-run programs. Food shelves and meal sites may be hosted in churches or town buildings. Or they may be programs of organizations like senior centers or community action agencies.

Some partners support food access for anyone who needs help in their town or region. Others support specific communities—like students and families, patients with chronic health conditions, older adults, or people experiencing houselessness.

“It has really, really, helped many, many families. Kids say, ‘Mr. Patrice? We really depend on this pantry. My mom tells me every day to make sure I stop at this store every time you are open. Every time you have eggs to make sure I stop there.’ It makes a difference.”

~Mr. Patrice of the Winooski School District, speaking about the “Necessity Store”

Head to our blog to learn more about the Winooski School Necessity Store and two other partners, Onion River Food Shelf, and BROC Community Action.

What all these partners have in common is that they are involved in ensuring everyone in Vermont can access the food they need. And, there are many kind and caring people making this work happen. We will share more about how food gets shared with neighbors in the next post in this series. Stay tuned!

Want to learn more about our food shelf and meal site partners and where they’re located in Vermont? Check out our handy Find a Food Shelf tool, which shows them on an interactive map.

Download an accessible PDF of this infographic.

Up Next: Learn about the ways in which partners, and the Foodbank, get the food to neighbors.