Philanthropy must go beyond charity to fund transformational food system change

COVID-19 is raising hard questions about food, hunger and human rights. As feeding lines lengthen
across the world, millions of dollars are being directed to food banks to address the sudden spike in
household food insecurity as falling consumer demand at foodservice outlets generates increased
amounts of food waste along agro-industrial supply chains. In the United States for example, the
federal government is leaning heavily on charitable food networks to distribute over $5 billion worth
of agricultural surplus in 2020, banking on the philanthropic sector to foot the distribution bill. In
Canada, the United Kingdom, the European Union and across the world, governments have
announced similar food purchase and redistribution programs to redirect agricultural surplus
toward food insecure communities.

Over the past forty years, food charity has captured the social imagination of funders and policy
makers eager to resolve the contradictions of a society that produces hunger amidst plenty. Decades
of investment into food banking infrastructure have woven a porous safety net for millions of low-
income households left behind by rising inequality, low wages, and the erosion of public entitlement
programs. While food banks work to address some of the immediate symptoms of an exploitative
food system, their focus on emergency responses leaves these organizations unable to meaningfully
address the race, gender and class dynamics coded within it, and the structural inequities that ensue
from this status quo.

We cannot afford to merely meet short term emergency needs during this time of great
transformation. Food is a human right to be guaranteed with dignity, not a need to be inadequately
met through charity. This will involve re-imagining unjust hierarchies of power that corporate
charity tends to reinforce. Our funding strategies, both public and private, must seek to reform the
food production, distribution and labor practices and the punitive welfare policies that aggravate the
inequities currently mapping onto our feeding lines. Doing so will mean directly addressing decades
of corporate deregulation and welfare retrenchment, but even more so the histories of colonialism,
slavery and Indigenous genocide that continue to haunt contemporary foodways.

The inequities in our food systems have been in place long before the novel coronavirus outbreak.
While those working in fields, processing factories, kitchens, grocery stores, regional food banks and
local charities are now clearly deemed “essential”, their labor has long been exploited and devalued
by a racist, colonial, sexist and capitalist food system that prioritizes shareholder profit over
community well-being. Many of those essential workers are themselves vulnerable to food insecurity
and rely on food banks to make ends meet. It is thus critical that those with the power to allocate
resources make every effort to fund organizations that explicitly address the root causes of inequality
in our food system by pushing back against the monopolistic tendencies and ever greater
concentration of our food corporations, the uneven distribution of land and capital, and uneven
access to the institutional resources and political spaces that shape food policy.

The Global Solidarity Alliance, a group of non-governmental organizations, national networks,

grassroots activists, and scholars concerned about hunger and poverty in wealthier countries, calls
on the philanthropic community to abide by the following principles in its efforts to address issues
related to food and hunger in the years ahead.

1. Commit to organizations in a spirit of slow philanthropy with the understanding that

food system transformation is a long-term commitment to social change.
a. reduce data collection demands, including monitoring and evaluation pressures, on
front-line organizations serving those in need
b. standardize data collection practices across public and private funding networks
2. Commit to projects and policy that shorten food bank lines through emphasizing the
realization of the right to food, income security and investing in community wealth
building projects.
3. Commit to grassroots organizations working to address the root causes of food system
inequity including:
a. projects led by people from Black, Indigenous and other historically marginalized and
oppressed communities.
b. projects that abide by principles of democratic decision making.
c. projects that prioritize agroecology and climate justice.
d. projects that prioritize the equitable redistribution of wealth
4. Commit to strengthening networks that contribute to the resilience of regional food
systems.
5. Commit to strengthening networks that build power from the bottom up to reshape
food policies that serve people over profit.
6. Commit to funding organizations that involve experts-by-experience in decision
making and governance structures.

The strategies, institutions and movements supported during this crisis will surely impact our food
and nutrition landscape for decades to come. We thus urge program officers, board members and
other decision makers in the philanthropic sector to fund interventions that go beyond food charity
to meaningfully engage in the food system transformation required to end hunger.

On behalf of the Global Solidarity Alliance,

Paul Taylor
Executive Director, FoodShare: Toronto, Canada

Robert Ojeda
Chief Program Officer, Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona: Tuscon, Arizona

Sabine Goodwin
Coordinator, Independent Food Aid Network: London, United Kingdom

Christina Wong
Director of Public Policy and Advocacy, Northwest Harvest: Seattle, Washington
Amanda Nickey
President and CEO, Mother Hubbard’s Cupboard: Bloomington, Indiana

Anthony Capece
Associate Director, Elijah’s Promise: New Brunswick, New Jersey

Karen Secord
Executive Director, Parkdale Food Centre: Ottowa, Ontario, Canada

Dee Woods
Granville Community Kitchen and The Landworkers’ Alliance: London, United Kingdom

Andy Fisher
Executive Director, Ecological Farming Association: Soquel, California

Noreen Springstead
Executive Director, WhyHunger: New York, New York

Janet Poppendieck
Professor Emerita of Sociology, Hunter College, City University of New York: New York, New York

Jen Zuckerman
Director of Strategic Initiatives, Duke World Food Policy Center: Durham, North Carolina

Dr. Joshua Lohnes

Food Policy Research Director, WVU – Center for Resilient Communities: Morgantown, West Virginia

Jennifer Black
Associate Professor, University of British Columbia: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Dr. Dave Beck

Lecturer of Social Policy, University of Salford, UK: Salford, United Kingdom

Daniel Warshawsky
Associate Professor, Wright State University: Dayton, Ohio

Dr. Kayleigh Garthwaite

Birmingham Fellow, University of Birmingham, UK: Birmingham, United Kingdom

Graham Riches
Professor Emeritus of Social Work, University of British Columbia: Vancouver, Canada

Laura Castrejon-Violante
PhD candidate, University of British Columbia: Vancouver, Canada

Rebecca de Souza
Professor, University of Minnesota: Duluth, Minnesota
 Direct Service Organizations
Julie Butner, CEO
Tarrant Area Food Bank, Forth Worth, TX, USA
Sam Bliss, Warehouse Manager
Food Nor Bombs, Burlington, VT, USA
Jade Crimson Rose Da Costa, Co-Founder
The People’s Pantry, Toronto, Canada
Risho Sapano, Executive Director
Mother Africa, Kent, WA, USA
Ian Marcuse, Program Manager
Grandview Woodland Food Connection,
Vancouver, Canada
Randolph Keaton, Director
Men and Women United for Youth & Families,
Riegelwood, NC, USA
Patricia Castaneda, Community Outreach
Director
World Relief, Spokane, WA, USA
Mary Stranahan, Board Member
Arlee Community Development Corporation,
Arlee, MT, USA
Valerie Alphonso, Executive Director
Second Chance, Toronto, Canada
Anti-Hunger and Food System Advocacy Organizations
Gisèle Yasmeen, Executive Director
Food Secure Canada, Montréal, Canada
Craig Willingham, Deputy Director
CUNY Urban Food Policy Institute, Brooklyn, NY,
USA
Imogen Richmond-Bishop, Project Coordinator
Right to Food Project, London, United Kingdom
Hank Harrera, President & CEO
Center for Popular Research, Education and
Policy, Fort Washakie, WY, USA
Adanna Phillip, MSW, RSW, Social Work Manager
CEE Center for Young Black Professionals, Toronto,
Canada
Charlotte Stewart-Juby, Manager
Dixon Hall Neighbourhood Services, Toronto,
Canada
Kirsten Wilson, Food Bank Coordinator
Agincourt Community Services Association,
Scarborough, Canada
Deena Ladd, Executive Director
Worker’s Action Center, Toronto, Canada
Kimberly Hart, Site-Leader
Witness to Hunger, New Haven, CT, USA
Hillary Ko, Community Food Programmer
Association of Neighbourhood Houses of British
Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
Diane Picard, Executive Director
Massachusetts Avenue Project Inc. Buffalo, NY,
USA
Gurbeen Bhasin, Executive Director
Aangen: A Community Service Organization,
Toronto, Canada
Hajira Hussain, Executive Director
Richmond Food Bank Society, Richmond, Canada
John E. Peck, Executive Director
Family Farm Defenders, Madison, WI, USA
Spencer Moss, Executive Director
West Virginia Food & Farm Coalition, Charleston,
WV, USA
Chef Greg Silverman, Executive Director
West Side Campaign Against Hunger, New York,
NY, USA
Steering Committee
Project Project :: Food Systems, Denver, CO, USA
Eleanore Boyle, Organizer
Mobilize Food, Vancouver, Canada
Brooke Hansen, Director SDG Action Alliance
University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA
Sarah Kim, Food Networks Coordinator
Vancouver Neighborhood Food Networks,
Vancouver, BC, Canada
Abra Brynne, Executive Director
Central Kootenay Food Policy Council, Nelson,
Canada
Rob Moquin, Executive Director
Food Matters Manitoba, Winnipeg, Canada
Dr. Ryan Whibbs, Chair
Brandon Food Council, Brandon, MB, Canada
Food System Development Organizations
M. Jahi Chapell, Executive Director
SAAFON (Southeastern African American Farmers’
Organic Network), Durham, NC, USA
Antonio Roman-Alcalá, Co-Coordinator
Agroecology Research-Action Collective, San
Francisco, CA, USA
Dr. Jeanne Firth
Visions, Inc. New Orleans, LA, USA
Samantha Dyer, Executive Director
Cambridge Sustainable Food, Cambridge, United
Kingdom
Martin Dagoberto L. Driggs, Policy Director
Northeast Organic Farming Association, Shelburne
Falls, MA, USA
Patti Miller, Local Food Systems Consultant
Grow with the Flow, LLC, Berkeley Springs, WV,
USA
Liz Gensler, Outreach Specialist
MSU Center for Regional Food Systems, Grand
Rapids, MI, USA
John Dempsey Parker
New Hope Collaborative, Bulbancha (New
Orleans), USA
Meryn Corkery, Co-Lead
Just Food Education Project, UBC, Vancouver,
Canada
Katie Anderson, Development Coordinator
Food Matters Manitoba, Winnipeg, Canada
Carole Hebden, Board Director
Kamloops Food Policy Council, Kamloops, BC,
Canada
Myreille Fortin, Social Innovation Coordinator
Food Matters Manitoba, Winnipeg, Canada
James Hanna, Executive Director
Cumberland County Food Security Council,
Portland, MN, USA
Zsofia Pasztor, Executive Co-Director
Farmer Frog, Everett, WA, USA
Terri Echegoyen, Farmer
Growing Neighbors, Spokane, WA, USA
Lisette Alent, Executive Director
Inland Northwest Farmers Market Association
Alexa Pitoulis, Interim Executive Director
Fresh Roots Urban Farm Society, Vancouver, BC,
Canada
Marie-Pierre Bilodeau, Founder
Refarmers, Vancouver, BC, Canada
Brandy Gallagher, Executive Director
Our Ecovillage, Shawnigan Lake, BC, Canada
Cody Alba, Coordinator
Bow Valley Food Alliance, Bow Valley, AB, Canada
Brianne Miller, CEO
Nada, Vancouver, BC, Canada
Deborah Harford, Executive Director
SFU Adaptation to Climate Change Team,
Vancouver, Canada
Zsuzsi Fodor, Organizer
Coalition for Food Access, Vancouver, Canada
Megan Larmer, Director of Regional Food
Programs, Glynwood Center for Regional Food
and Farming, Cold Spring, NY, USA
Shivani Singh, Founding and Managing Partner
Pathfinder, Toronto, Canada
Winnie R. Huston, Food Policy Strategist
D.C. Greens, Washington, D.C. USA
Jeannette Abi-Nader, Executive Director
Cultivate Charlottesville, Charlottesville, VA, USA
Lucretia John, Development Director
Green Worker Cooperatives, Brooklyn, NY, USA
Emma Hileman, Farmacy Project Director
Vermont Farmers Food Center, Rutland, VT, USA
Director Team
Organic Growers School, Asheville, NC, USA
Laura Smit, Interim Executive Director
Vancouver Farmers Market, Vancouver, BC,
Canada
Nutrition Education & Outreach
Laurel Burton, Population Health Dietitian
Northern Health Authority, Prince George, Canada
Marissa Alexander, Regional Dietitian
First Nations Health Authority, Prince George,
Canada
Academia
Robert Gottlieb, Professor Emeritus Occidental
College, Urban & Environmental Policy Institute,
Los Angeles, CA, USA
Molly Anderson, William R. Kenan, Jr. Professor
of Food Studies Middlebury College, Middlebury,
VT, USA
Maggie Dickenson, Professor
Guttman Community College - CUNY
Kathleen McAfee, Professor
San Francisco State University, Richmond, CA, USA
Hannah Wittman, Professor
University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
My Nguyen, Farmer
Garberville, CA, USA
Ravindra Botve, Agronomist
Dr. Green Crop Care Solutions, Pune, India
Terri McKenzie, Food Systems Consultant
Coeur d’Alene, ID, USA
Jesús Vásquez, General Coordinador
Organización Boricuá de Agricultura Ecógicola de
Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico
Hélène Descoteaux, Administrator
Tofino Community Food Initiative, Tofino, BC,
Canada
Nyree Hodges, Project Coordinator
CT Farm to School Collaborative, Hartford, CT,
USA
Emma Sirois, National Director
Health Care Without Harm, Reston, VA, USA
Marlène Goulet, Diététiste
Université d’Ottawa, Gatineau, Canada
Jennifer Brady, Assistant Professor
Mount Saint Vincent University, Halifax, Canada
Nancy Perlot, Assistant Professor
Bastyr University, Kenmore, WA, USA
James Cavendish, Associate Professor
University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA
Rev. Dr. Daniel L. Brunner, Professor of
Christian History, Portland Seminary, Portland,
OR, USA
Billy Bromage, Assistant Clinical Professor
Yale Department of Psychiatry, New Haven, CT,
USA
Gerry Kasten, Lecturer
University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC,
Canada
Nicole Civita, Instructor and Sustainable Food
Systems Specialization Lead, University of
Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, USA
Faisal Ali Mohamed, PhD Student
York University, Toronto, Canada
Jed Debruin, PhD Student
University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY, USA
Dana James, PhD Candidate
University of British Columbia, Vancouver,
xʷməθkʷəy̓ əm territory, Canada
Susanna Klassen, PhD Candidate
University of British Columbia, Vancounver,
Canada

Alana Haynes Stein, PhD Candidate Roseann Kerr, Graduate Student

U.C. Davis, Sacramento, CA, USA Queen’s University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada

Arnel Borras, RN, PhD Candidate Walter Furness, Graduate Student

York University, Toronto, Canada Texas State University, San Marcos, TX, USA

Jessica Gilbert, PhD Candidate Puneet Bansal, Student

University of Buffalo, Buffalo, NY, USA Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai, India

Annelise Straw, PhD Student Emma Liberman, Student

University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY U.C. Davis, Davis, CA, USA

Alanna Higgins, PhD Candidate Victoria Roberts, Student

West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV, USA U.C. Davis, Davis, CA, USA

Other Allies

Danielle Walker, House of Delegates District 51
State of West Virginia, Morgantown, WV USA
Rachel Costello, Program Associate and Grants
Manager, The Leo and Peggy Pierce Family
Foundation, Radnor, PA, USA
Jenny van Enckevort, Consultant & Community
Developer, Earth to Jenny Communications,
Vancouver, Canada
Mihret Haile, Project Manager
Art and Health, Toronto, Canada

Kathleen Gisbon, Writer and Food Policy Olivia Teter

Advocate, Victoria, Canada San Jose, United States

Matthew Young, Independent Living Specialist Erika McDonald

BeechWood, Inc. Saint Paul, MN, USA Toronto, Canada

Madison Rasmussen Stacey Sude

Davis, CA, USA Brooklyn, NY, USA

Sandra Frangiadakis Kate Kennedy

Kamloops, Canada Brandon, Canada

Rahul Basu Olivia Boyce

Dona Paula, India Brandon, Canada

Teresa C. Manuel, Food Justice Proponent

San Diego, CA, USA
Elizabeth Abbey, PhD, RDN
Spokane, WA, USA

Julie Fortin
Vancouver, Canada

Gaia Mika
Boulder, CO, USA

Daphne Rowe, President

Pembroke Philanthropy Advisors, Radnor, PA, USA