Best Food Grants for Nonprofits in District of Columbia

The Social Impact Fund - Nationwide Grant supports innovative solutions addressing health care access, food security, and economic empowerment. Funded by the American Heart Association, this grant prioritizes community-led projects from organizations with under $10M in revenue. Eligible entities include both for-profit and nonprofit organizations based in the U.S. and Puerto Rico. Grants can provide up to $250,000 to initiatives that demonstrate measurable impact, fostering sustainable change in health and wellness.

The No Kid Hungry Grant, provided by Share Our Strength, aims to support schools and community groups in ensuring children have access to nutritious meals. Grants are allocated for essential equipment rather than food, addressing the unique needs of programs serving children. With a focus on reducing financial barriers, the initiative prioritizes funding for the School Breakfast Program and summer meals, ultimately striving for equitable access to resources that help combat childhood hunger and promote community engagement.

The Journey For Good Grant aims to combat poverty by supporting charitable organizations in North America focused on food security, housing, education, and workforce development. The grant prioritizes initiatives that provide nutritional wellness, combat homelessness, and support veterans and their families. By fostering partnerships among nonprofits, government, and business, the foundation addresses the interconnected challenges faced by economically vulnerable individuals, creating sustainable solutions for community empowerment.

The Whole Foods Market Store Giving Program supports local communities by providing financial assistance to 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations that focus on food access and environmental stewardship. This biannual program allows eligible organizations to apply via the Community Engagement Portal, although not all requests can be fulfilled due to high demand. Priority is given to those without recent funding, promoting sustainable community engagement.

The Food Access and Retail Expansion (FARE) Fund Grant, part of America’s Healthy Food Financing Initiative, aims to enhance access to nutritious food in underserved regions. With a budget of $60 million over five years, the initiative supports innovative fresh food retail projects, offering grants and loans to address barriers in food access. This funding is crucial for catalyzing sustainable food enterprises and improving local food systems, ultimately fostering healthier communities.

The Ralph J. Torraco Food Bank/Shelter Fund Grant, offered by the UNICO Foundation Inc., aims to combat hunger and provide shelter for the homeless and indigent. Eligible applicants include registered non-profit food pantries, soup kitchens, and shelters in 13 U.S. states. The grant focuses on direct services, ensuring that all funds are used for food and shelter, not for operating expenses, thereby promoting effective community support for vulnerable populations.

Newman’s Own Foundation is offering the Food Justice for Kids Prize, providing up to $100,000 in grant funding over two years for organizations promoting food justice for children in the U.S. This initiative focuses on Indigenous Food Justice and Nutrition Education, addressing the high rates of food insecurity among children, particularly in marginalized communities. Eligible applicants include nonprofits, public schools, and tribes that serve children under 18. The foundation aims to ensure all kids have access to nutritious food and education on sustainable food systems.

The McKesson Foundation Grant provides funding up to $25,000 for organizations focused on improving health outcomes in underserved communities. Established in 1943, the foundation prioritizes health equity through strategic partnerships aimed at reducing cancer burdens, preparing healthcare professionals, and enhancing crisis response efforts. Eligible applicants include national and local nonprofits targeting specific regions in the U.S. and Canada. The foundation emphasizes projects that align with its mission and demonstrate significant community impact.

The Hearst Foundation's Social Service Grant focuses on tackling chronic poverty by funding direct-service organizations that implement effective solutions for economic independence and family strengthening. With a mission to support diverse nonprofits in the U.S., the Foundation allocates approximately 15% of its total funding to social services, prioritizing scalable programs that serve significant populations. The minimum grant size is $100,000, and special consideration is given to organizations addressing affordable housing, domestic violence, and youth development.

The Alpha Gamma Delta Foundation provides grants aimed at combating hunger in the U.S. and Canada, focusing on direct food assistance, food rescue, and nutrition education. Eligible organizations can receive up to $10,000 in funding, with an average grant size of $5,000. Since its inception, the Foundation has awarded over $2 million to support local food programs, ensuring communities have access to essential resources and assistance for those in need.

Mayo Family Foundation

The Mayo Family Foundation, founded by Simer and Vicki Mayo in 2019, is dedicated to creating a lasting impact across the globe. With a focus on eradicating food insecurity, empowering at-risk youth, and advancing women’s equality, the Foundation strives to transform lives and foster a brighter future for all.

Domestic Focus

We envision a world where concerns about the next meal, a safe place to sleep, or access to healthcare become a thing of the past. Our goal is to provide long-term solutions that will build stronger, more resilient individuals and communities.

A child at risk is less likely to transition to adulthood successfully. Our mission is to equip our youth with the tools needed for academic achievement and job readiness. These tools are key to securing a future marked by financial stability and high hopes of becoming a positive member of society.

Grant Application

The Mayo Family Foundation (MFF) is dedicated to creating a lasting impact. Its focus is on eradicating food insecurities, women’s equality issues, and empowering at-risk youth. The foundation strives to transform lives and foster a brighter future for all.

This grant has been created to provide the funding needed to make a significant impact in two key areas: combating food insecurity and empowering at-risk youth.

We believe that by supporting dedicated nonprofit organizations like yours, we can create a lasting positive impact in our community. Together, we can ensure that no one goes hungry and that every young person has the opportunity to thrive.

Sodexo Stop Hunger Foundation

The Sodexo Stop Hunger Foundation goes beyond food aid to create lasting change. Through innovative programs, strategic partnerships and volunteer action, Stop Hunger tackles the root causes of food insecurity.

In 2025, Sodexo Stop Hunger Foundation and the Hunger Center awarded grants to 131 programs representing 118 communities in 37 states plus the District of Columbia. Collectively, these programs provided an estimated 22,000 backpacks full of shelf-stable food items for students to take home for the weekend or holidays when school meals are not served.

Since 2006, the Sodexo Stop Hunger Foundation has been a driving force behind weekend and holiday hunger relief for students across the U.S. Through support of food backpack programs, the Foundation partners with local food banks and schools to discreetly provide K-12 students with backpacks filled with nutritious, shelf-stable meals. These backpacks are distributed in safe, familiar settings – typically on the last school day before a weekend or school break – ensuring that all children who rely on free or reduced-price school meals don’t go hungry when school is out.

K-12 Backpack Grant

The K-12 Backpack Grant is an initiative launched by the Sodexo Stop Hunger Foundation and administered in partnership with the Congressional Hunger Center to support community backpack programs. Grants of $1,000 will be issued to community organizations with established backpack feeding programs that provide students with shelf-stable, nutritious meals when school is out of session.

Request for Proposals: Launchpad Funds

Background

Coefficient Giving is increasing its giving, primarily to prepare for the billions of dollars in new philanthropic capital that may become available in the coming years. Our increased giving in global health and wellbeing is a temporary surge, with two objectives: to smooth funding and pull forward initiatives we expect to be cost-effective, and to help create an ecosystem of regrantors and implementers with the capacity to allocate this new money as cost-effectively as possible. Additional context on our scaling is provided in this blog post. 

With new potential capital on the way, we want to increase the supply of actionable and fundable plans to address some of the world’s hardest problems. We’re looking for specific, credible strategies to convert funding into measurable progress. Our ideal funds are:

However, we are also open to funds that are thematic and don’t have a quantified goal — for example, a fund organized around a promising type of intervention. Such funds still need to be led by a single, identifiable person who is accountable for the fund’s direction.

Through this request for EOIs, we aim to seed or scale Launchpad Funds that can grow to $100m+ over the next few years. We don’t seek scale for its own sake; it is a proxy for the ambition of the fund, and a signal that the problem is large and tractable enough to justify deploying significantly more capital over time.

What we will fund

• We expect to support established ideas that have either not yet secured anchor support or could significantly scale beyond their existing level of funding.
• This funding can cover operating expenses, but we expect most of it to be used for activities that make progress on the fund’s goals — whether through regranting or direct implementation.
• For exceptional proposals, we may consider funding levels beyond $50m. We anticipate higher funding levels will involve more thought partnership from our team.
• While we don’t expect to make grants longer than 36 months, funded proposals may later be considered for additional funding beyond the initial period.

Disabled Veterans National Foundation

The Disabled Veterans National Foundation (DVNF) was established in 2007 to support veterans facing challenges that traditional systems could not fully address. From its earliest days, DVNF has been focused on closing critical gaps in care and providing resources that help veterans rebuild their lives with dignity and stability.

Guided by this commitment, DVNF developed its Health & Comfort programs, offering emergency financial assistance, housing transition support, food assistance, comfort kits, and wellness initiatives. These programs are designed to meet veterans where they are and to provide practical solutions that restore hope and stability. Today, DVNF continues to grow as a trusted national nonprofit. Every day, our team works with a clear purpose: to change lives for the men and women who have served our country.

Veterans Food Assistance Program

It is our goal to ensure that no veteran goes hungry by providing essential food assistance and household support, fostering stability and well-being in the lives of our veterans and their families.

The Veterans Food Assistance Program (VFAP) is designed to provide a one-time grant of essential food and household support to veterans and their families, ensuring no veteran goes hungry. With the rising cost of living, especially food prices due to inflation, this program offers a much-needed lifeline to those who have served our country. Once approved, the DVNF program team will handle the shopping for you.

The Veterans Food Assistance Program provides a one-time grant per household to support different family sizes, given the rising cost of food:

• Married Veterans Grant Allowance
  • Married - No Children up to $250
  • Married - 1 Child up to $300
  • Married - 2 Children up to $450
  • Married - 3+ Children up to $500
• Single Veterans Grant Allowance
  • Single - No Children up to $200
  • Single - 1 Child up to $300
  • Single - 2 Children up to $350
  • Single - 3+ Children up to $450

Better Food Policy Fund 

Since its inception, the Better Food Policy Fund has set its strategic direction in a participatory fashion. We are intentionally building capacity for engagement to ensure the Fund aligns with the needs of food policy council stakeholders.   

Thus far, the Fund has engaged 300+ food policy council stakeholders to help co-develop the Fund. We are immensely grateful for the individuals who helped shape the initial direction of this fund. We view this growing stakeholder audience as the people to whom the Fund’s governing body, the Independent Advisory Committee, is ultimately accountable.

Grantmaking

The Better Food Policy Fund invests in US-based food policy councils, empowering community and government collaboration for progressive food policy. We utilize participatory processes to enhance equity and redistribute power in the funding landscape. We seek to celebrate and uplift the work of food policy councils, and believe every food policy council is worthy of financial support.

We define “food policy councils” as councils, networks, coalitions, or other groups working across boundaries at the tribal, municipal, county, state, or regional level.  

We support actions aimed at ensuring an enabling environment for policy change, such as: 

• increasing levels of inclusive and equitable stakeholder engagement in public processes
• engaging systems thinking when tackling complex food system challenges
• facilitating collaboration with and across local government agencies and departments 
• developing or revising local policies and plans  

We define “better food policy” as practices, procedures, ordinances, laws, etc. of governing institutions which strengthen community-based food systems.

We define “civic collaboration” as people joining together at the intersection of community and government to address public issues.

About Lions Club International FoundationLions Clubs International Foundation (LCIF) provides grants that empower the service of our members. Since its inception in 1968, LCIF has awarded more than US$1.3 billion in grant funding.  Mission :Our mission is to empower Lions clubs, volunteers and partners to improve health and wellbeing, strengthen communities, and support those in need through humanitarian service and grants that impact lives globally, and encourage peace and international understanding. And we fulfill it every day, everywhere we serve.Lions Club International Hunger Grant ProgramHunger Grants focus on strengthening infrastructure and providing essential equipment for Lions’ hunger-relief efforts. These grants empower Lions to support vital initiatives such as school feeding programs, food banks and feeding centers, ensuring that those in need receive the nourishment they require. These grants support infrastructure and equipment acquisition for Lions’ projects focused on alleviating hunger.Grant Examples: 

• Construction or expansion of food banks, feeding centers and food storage facilities.
• Purchase of refrigerators and freezers to store perishable food items.
• Vehicles to transport, collect and deliver food.

Ecolab Foundation

Ecolab Foundation is a philanthropic arm of Ecolab dedicated to advancing community well-being through programs that promote education, environmental stewardship, and public health. Its mission is to create positive social impact by supporting initiatives that strengthen communities and foster sustainable development.

The foundation’s primary areas of engagement include educational programs that enhance learning and workforce readiness, environmental projects that encourage conservation and sustainability, and health-related initiatives that improve hygiene and safety. It focuses on partnerships that deliver measurable benefits and long-term impact.

Ecolab Foundation operates primarily within the United States while also supporting global initiatives aligned with its corporate responsibility goals. Its geographic scope reflects a commitment to addressing local community needs and contributing to broader sustainability efforts.

The foundation collaborates with nonprofit organizations, educational institutions, and community-based groups. It prioritizes partnerships that demonstrate strong governance, clear objectives, and alignment with its mission of education, health, and environmental responsibility.

Ecolab Match Program

Ecolab established the Volunteer and Community Relations programs to encourage and reward Ecolab employee and alumni involvement in the communities where people live and work. There are three programs including the Board Leadership Volunteer Grant.

Board Leadership Volunteer Grant

Ecolab will donate up to $500 USD annually to a qualifying 501(c)3 organization (some restrictions apply) for which an eligible person serves on the Board of Directors. 

Focus Areas of Giving

• Youth and Education: programs that promote youth development, particularly for programs that ensure all students are successful
• Civic & Community Development: affordable housing, work readiness, crisis assistance and hunger relief
• Environment & Conservation: hands-on environmental learning programs, environment and conservation organizations
• Arts & Culture: arts education for children and youth as well as support for museums and the performing arts

Food insecurity impacts every town in America — rural, urban, and all the communities on every road in between. It affects all age groups — from children through seniors — including about one-third of college students. It happens for different reasons — a lost job, a natural disaster, a pandemic, and more.

Ann B. Zekauskas saw this food insecurity first-hand while volunteering in New York City soup kitchens, often on Thanksgiving. She knew that people go hungry every day — and that many food-insecure people are prone to obesity. Limited options often lead to food choices that are higher in calories, but lower in nutrition.

Whether it’s to aid a family that has fallen on hard times or to assist a community or a country during a crisis, we support food banks, neighborhood kitchens, and other hunger relief organizations to provide the next healthy meal to those in need.

The Ann B. Zekauskas Family Foundation is committed to supporting qualified 501(c)(3) organizations that align with our mission and values. We welcome grant requests from nonprofit organizations seeking to make a meaningful impact in their communities in the areas of nutritional education, food access, or the advancement of cuilnary arts careers. 

Navigant Credit Union 

Navigant Credit Union is the longest-operating, member-owned credit union in Rhode Island. Since its founding in 1915, Navigant Credit Union has been dedicated to providing its members with unparalleled financial products and services, while working every day to stay committed to the financial well-being of the families, businesses and communities we serve. 

Navigant Credit Union Charitable Foundation Grant

For over a century, Navigant Credit Union has been committed to making a meaningful difference in the community. In 2017, we established the Navigant Credit Union Charitable Foundation to further amplify our impact in five strategic areas:

• Education & Financial Literacy: Organizational and capital support for programs, supplies, building products, sports facilities and teams.
• Social Services: Financial support for programs and organizations for children, veterans, hunger and housing.
• Public Health, Safety & Well-Being: Support for programs addressing public safety, emergency care and eradication of disease.

RRCU Gives Foundation Grant

Mission Statement:

RRCU Gives strengthens our region by providing meaningful financial support to nonprofits addressing hunger, housing, and financial education. Through our annual grant awards and major funding initiatives, we help local organizations grow, thrive, and create lasting change.

 We award grants annually, with applications in June and awards in August.

Focus Areas

• Hunger
• Housing
• Financial Education

About

With deep roots in California’s Central Valley, The Save Mart Companies and its family of stores prides itself in being a part of neighborhoods and putting people first. Our dedication to customers is reflected in the connections we’ve made in the communities we’ve served for more than 70 years.

The Save Mart Companies CARES Foundation

In 2000, we established The Save Mart Companies CARES Foundation, our philanthropic, non-profit organization, supporting programs and organizations that provide vital resources for children and families in the communities we serve. The CARES Foundation focuses on building stronger communities through fresh foods, accessibility, and programs that support youth and helping them to thrive. Annually, The CARES Foundation contributes approximately $500,000 in small grants to support community-based, non-profit organizations.

The Save Mart Companies CARES Foundation Grant

The CARES Foundation’s focus is building stronger communities through fresh foods, access to food, and programs that support youth and helping them thrive.

The CARES Foundation will review, on a quarterly basis, among other things, the breadth of the audience served; the likely impact in the community; the importance of the need to be addressed in the community; and the community reputation, service history, and financial stability of the group or program seeking funds. No one of these or other factors will necessarily be weighted more heavily than another. Instead, each group or program will be measured against all groups and 2 programs seeking funding at the time. For example, a program serving a small segment of the community but that addresses an especially important community need, and thus has the potential for a strong and meaningful impact, would be favored over a group serving a wider clientele but that fills a less important community need. Requests for Grants should be a minimum of $500.00 up to $10,000.00. Programs and organizations requesting smaller grants should contact the Store Manager of the nearest Save Mart Companies’ store location for request consideration.

Recipients that receive grants for more than one year must demonstrate meaningful outcomes for the previous investment made by The CARES Foundation.

Home

The Middle Run Foundation is a family-governed foundation based in Newark, Delaware. The Board of the foundation is chaired by Sarah Ives Gore, its founder, and includes her children, grandchildren, and non-family members who bring experience and expertise to our work.

About

Purpose:

The purpose of the foundation is to fund and support non-profit programs which focus on building healthy, self-sufficient families.

Apply

The Middle Run Foundation makes grants up to $500,000 annually with individual grants ranging from $5,000 to $50,000.

The Dale Jr. Foundation is dedicated to empowering underprivileged youth through targeted support in five key areas: Empowerment, Education, Wellness, Hunger, and Hope. By providing safe homes, educational resources, and healthy food, the foundation helps children overcome adversity and achieve their dreams. Their commitment extends to various charities, ensuring that every child has the opportunity to thrive. The foundation emphasizes community support and holistic care, making a significant impact in the lives of many young people.

Wegmans Family Foundation Inc focuses on cultivating healthy communities through support for hunger relief, health initiatives, education, and youth programs. They prioritize collaborations with local nonprofits to enhance community well-being, offering assistance in key areas like economic mobility and youth engagement. Despite their wide-ranging support, they have specific ineligibility criteria, such as not accommodating personal requests or solicitation on their property, aiming to direct resources effectively where they are needed most.

The Herbert Family Foundation Grant focuses on philanthropic efforts that promote healing and fight hunger. Founded by Jim and Judi Herbert, both Distinguished Alumni of the University of Tennessee, the foundation supports health and food charities. It aims to advance medical research, education, and hunger relief initiatives, emphasizing sustainable practices and nutritional assistance. The foundation's mission reflects its commitment to impactful charitable causes that resonate personally with the founders.

The Daily Bread Grants, offered by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, aim to support congregations with feeding ministries. Starting from November 1st, organizations can apply for $500 grants to help alleviate hunger in their communities. Priority is given to rural ministries, and applications will be accepted until funds are exhausted or until November 15th. This initiative not only provides immediate assistance but also encourages further financial support for food-based services.

The ENF Community Investments Program offers Spotlight Grants to Lodges, empowering them to tackle pressing community issues such as family literacy, veteran homelessness, and hunger. Each Lodge can apply for a $2,000 grant without needing to meet the GER's per-member-giving goal. Funds can be used for one of the designated project plans or combined with the Beacon Grant, enabling flexible support for local initiatives.