During the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, GrowNYC partnered with the City of New York and launched an Emergency Fresh Food Box Program, distributing a total of 6.1 million pounds of fresh food, equivalent to 5,083,333 meals. Through a network of distribution points operated by 27 partner community-based groups throughout the five boroughs, free food was directed to low-income New Yorkers who were undocumented, unemployed, or struggling to access federal benefits.
The COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent economic impact had greatly increased the number of New York City families who were unsure about where they would get their next meal or if they could afford it. 1.2 million New Yorkers were experiencing food insecurity before COVID-19 and that number had increased by almost 40 percent due to the pandemic —1 in 4 children in New York City experienced food insecurity.
Distribution events were scheduled in all five boroughs and each box contained a variety of locally sourced farm-fresh produce such as apples, corn, squash, peppers, eggplant, and cucumbers and supplemented with a starch and a protein such as rice, beans, lentils, or shelf-stable milk. The GrowNYC Emergency Fresh Food Boxes include enough food for between six to eight meals per household. The effort was part of the more than 190 million meals distributed by the City of New York since the pandemic began. The program also received support from the United States Department of Agriculture.
In addition to the Emergency Food Box, GrowNYC also distributed additional thousands of pounds of locally sourced, farm-fresh food to New York City families in need through a network of nonprofit organizations and partners through GrowNYC Wholesale.
In response to the pandemic, GrowNYC explored ways to make food affordable for food insecure New Yorkers, such as half price Fresh Food Boxes for SNAP users and sliding-scale pricing. As well as converting two of our emergency food box sites into permanent affordable food access points. Sites were established in neighborhoods needing fresh food access but unable to support a large farmers market.
Over the years, emergency food distribution continued through GrowNYC Wholesale’s New York Food For New York Families project (2025-2025) and now Food For Families project, which was launched in 2026.