Healthy Food Kickstarter Program

CONSUMER AND BUSINESS AFFAIRS

County Spending Category
2.5 Healthy Families
Federal Expenditure Category
Economic Impact Assistance: Other
Project Launch Date
04/03/2023
Anticipated End Date
12/24/2024
Interpretation Languages
  • Spanish
Written Languages
  • Spanish

Project Contacts

Indicators & Metrics to Date

  • Execute contract with TPA
    1
  • TPA promotes grant opportunities through partners
    1
  • Grant applications and materials translated to most in-need languages (at minimum Spanish)
    1
  • Total number of grants disbursed
    25
  • Total $ amount of grants disbursed
    4080000
  • Number of performance reports submitted by TPA
    38
  • Total number of direct technical assistance sessions given to grantees
    242
  • Number of outreach campaigns conducted by grantees
    0
  • Number of guidance sessions provided to grantees to develop outreach campaigns
    0
  • Total Number of Projects Launched
    22
  • Program materials and methodology/ metrics to evaluate program completed
    0
  • Total number of direct technical assistance sessions given to small disadvantaged applicants
    242
  • Outreach campaign conducted leveraging use of Ethnic and Hyper Local Media ARP.
    1

Target Populations

  • Small Businesses
  • locally owned businesses, community-based organizations, nonprofits and social enterprises interested in grant funding to launch projects aimed at launching or expanding healthy food access in census tracts as identified in the COVID Recovery Index from the County Equity Explorer tool.

Project Description

Los Angeles County is home to the largest population of food insecure people in the nation, according to the Los Angeles Food Policy Council. Nearly 30 percent of low-to-moderate individuals in Los Angeles County struggle with food insecurity, not knowing where their next meal will come from. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, evidence emerged suggesting that food insecurity worsened in Los Angeles County as people were unable to go to work and lost their paychecks or were unable to go to stores due to risk of infection. According to a 2021 report published by the County of Los Angeles Department of Public Health, Food Insecurity in Los Angeles County Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic: • Latinos experienced the highest prevalence of food insecurity (40%) from April 2020 to December 2020, followed by African Americans (39%), Asians (28%), and Whites (21%) • The majority of adults who experienced food insecurity from April to July 2020 were: Female (57%), 18-40 years old (59%), Latino (55%), and low-to-moderate (82%) – defined as living at less than 300% FPL. • When household income and employment status were adjusted, individuals ages 18 to 50 years had significantly greater odds of experiencing food insecurity, compared to those ages 65 years and older from April 2020 to July 2020. • Half, or 50.3%, of adults who experienced food insecurity between April to July 2020 had children in their households and 35.6% were single parents. • Individuals who were found to be food insecure were almost twice as likely to have been infected by the COVID-19 compared to those that were food secure between April and July 2020. In addition to large scale unemployment and loss of income, the supply chain was also heavily impacted by the pandemic and stores could not stock healthy, affordable food. The Department of Consumer and Business Affairs (DCBA) will focus on the food distribution side of the food equity equation by improving and expanding access to healthy, affordable, and sustainable food in areas of the County that are the most food insecure (so called “food deserts”). The Healthy Food Kickstarter aims is to alleviate food insecurity in food deserts, including those caused and/or exacerbated by COVID, by providing grants and technical assistance to businesses that increase access to healthy food options. DCBA will provide grants and technical assistance to support community food distribution, retailers, and enterprises in providing fresh, healthy foods to the County’s most food insecure communities, thereby, strengthening and contributing to a more equitable food distribution system in Los Angeles County, including the communities most impacted by COVID. 

Goals & Objectives

Goal Description Increase access to healthy food through funding that will assist at minimum 20 organizations (If all receive maximum amount of grant) or at most 205 organizations (if all receive minimum amount of Grant $20,000) who want to launch or expand equitable food distribution projects areas of the County identified as food insecure or food deserts by December 31, 2024.

Objective Description Grants: Secure a third-party administrator to disburse $4,100,000 in grants to eligible organizations and businesses who provide community access to healthy food by September 30, 2023. The Healthy Food Kickstarter will award grants ranging between $20,000 and $200,000 to eligible organizations and businesses for the following activities: Launch/Startup grants up to $20,000: To launch innovative projects that will create new access to healthy, affordable options for most in-need communities considered food insecure as identified by the County’s Equity Explorer tool Expansion grants up to $200,000: To expand existing food distribution efforts to historically underserved communities. Capital/Infrastructure grants up to $200,000: To invest in the development of brick-and-mortar facilities.

Activity Description By January 1, 2023, DCBA will contract with a third-party administrator to administer the Healthy Food Kickstarter program
Indicators
# Type Name Baseline Target
17 Performance Execute contract with TPA 1.00 1.00

Activity Description By February 15,2023 , third-party administrator, in collaboration with DCBA, designs the grant application, full eligibility criteria, application guidance, (in multiple languages at minimum Spanish), and will use these to develop a methodology and metrics to evaluate how these projects increased access to healthy foods.
Indicators
# Type Name Baseline Target
4 Performance Program materials and methodology/ metrics to evaluate program completed 1.00 1.00

Activity Description Third party administrator will be expected to promote the grant opportunity through key stakeholders and industry associations, such as the Los Angeles Food Policy Council, California Grocers Association, and California Farmers’ Markets Association, to reach out to prospective grantees. 
Indicators
# Type Name Baseline Target
18 Performance TPA promotes grant opportunities through partners 1.00 1.00

Activity Description The third-party administrator will aim to translate grant applications and materials to most in-need languages (at minimum Spanish)
Indicators
# Type Name Baseline Target
20 Performance Grant applications and materials translated to most in-need languages (at minimum Spanish) 1.00 1.00

Activity Description By October 31, 2023, the third-party administrator will have disbursed $4,100,000 in grant funding to a minimum of 20 grantees (if all receive the maximum amount of grant at $200,000) or a maximum of 205 grantees (if all receive minimum amount of grant at $20,000).
Indicators
# Type Name Baseline Target
19 Performance Grant applications and materials are translated to most in-need languages (at minimum Spanish) 1.00 1.00
24 Service Delivery Total number of grants disbursed 0.00 20.00
25 Service Delivery Total $ amount of grants disbursed 0.00 4100000.00

Activity Description The third-party administrator will submit monthly performance reports to DCBA throughout the duration of the program
Indicators
# Type Name Baseline Target
21 Performance Number of performance reports submitted by TPA 0.00 12.00

Outcome Description At minimum 20 grants or at maximum 205 grants are disbursed to CBOS/businesses so they can launch or expand a healthy food access project to alleviate food insecurity

Goal Description To support the successful launch and implementation of at minimum 20 funded projects by December 31, 2024.

Objective Description Technical Assistance: Provide one year of ongoing, direct technical assistance in the form of training & coaching sessions to a minimum of 20 grantees to successfully launch and implement projects.

Activity Description By October 31, 2023, technical assistance will be provided by the third-party administrator to a minimum of 20 grantees to successfully launch and implement their projects.
Indicators
# Type Name Baseline Target
15 Service Delivery Total number of direct technical assistance sessions given to grantees 20.00
23 Program Outcome Total Number of Projects Launched 0.00 20.00

Activity Description Third party administrator will make available technical assistance to assist smaller disadvantaged business applicants (as defined by our third-party administrator once onboarded) in developing their grant proposal 
Indicators
# Type Name Baseline Target
5 Service Delivery Total number of direct technical assistance sessions given to small disadvantaged applicants 0.00 1.00

Activity Description The third-party administrator will provide technical assistance to a minimum 20 grantees to successfully launch and implement their healthy food access project by October 31, 2023.
Indicators
# Type Name Baseline Target
3 Program Outcome Total Number of Projects Launched 0.00 20.00

Outcome Description To support the successful launch and implementation of at minimum 20 funded projects by October 31, 2023.
Indicators
# Type Name Baseline Target
15 Service Delivery Total number of direct technical assistance sessions given to grantees 20.00

Goal Description To promote Healthy Food Kickstarter projects through broad community education campaigns co-created with grantees and through leveraging the use of the Ethnic and Hyper Local Media ARP by December 31, 2024.

Objective Description Grantee Community Outreach: The Healthy Food Kickstarter grantees, as part of the grant requirements, will implement individual promotion and marketing plans to increase visibility of their projects in the communities they aim to serve.

Activity Description The third-party administrator will provide guidance to grantees on developing and launching their project’s outreach campaign to the communities they aim to serve by August 30, 2024.
Indicators
# Type Name Baseline Target
2 Performance Number of guidance sessions provided to grantees to develop outreach campaigns 0.00 20.00

Activity Description Each grantee will, as part of the grant requirement, conduct an outreach campaign targeting the food-insecure communities they aim to serve through there project.  
Indicators
# Type Name Baseline Target
1 Program Outcome Number of outreach campaigns conducted by grantees 0.00 20.00

Outcome Description To promote Healthy Food Kickstarter projects through broad community education campaigns co-created with grantees and through leveraging the use of the Ethnic and Hyper Local Media ARP.
Indicators
# Type Name Baseline Target
16 Service Delivery Outreach campaign conducted leveraging use of Ethnic and Hyper Local Media ARP. 1.00