Food Metrics Report 2020 The City of New York Mayor Bill de Blasio Food Policy Cover Photo Credit: Mayoral Photography Office 1 2 3 4 LETTER FROM THE ADDRESSING IMPROVING INCREASING SUPPORTING APPENDIX DIRECTOR OF FOOD FOOD INSECURITY IN NEW CITY FOOD PROCUREMENT AND HEALTHY FOOD ACCESS AND AWARE- A JUST AND SUSTAINABLE FOOD LOCAL LAW POLICY YORK CITY SERVICE NESS SYSTEM 52 LETTER FROM THE DIRECTOR Dear Fellow New Yorkers As we have all witnessed, the COVID-19 pandemic has had unprecedented impacts on all aspects of New York City life. While the pandemic has deepened the challenges facing our neighbors and businesses, it has also reinvigorated attention around the importance of creating a food system that is healthy, equitable, and resilient. The pandemic has acutely illustrated how a myriad of factors – including national and international dynamics – affect our city’s food system, but we have shown a steadfast commitment at the local level to ensure that all New Yorkers, regardless of where they live, their income level, age, ability, gender identity, race, ethnicity or immigration status, can take full advantage of food that promotes individual and planetary health. Despite the tremendous challenges faced this year, the City’s commitment to food equity has never been stronger. We believe access to food is a fundamental human right and it is our responsibility as a city to ensure that all residents have the ability and opportunity to access culturally-appropriate, nutritious, and affordable food through the systems and resources we deliver. This year’s Food Metrics Report provides a brief overview of the production, processing, distribution, and consumption of food provided by City agencies to communities across all five boroughs and highlights the progress the City is making towards building a resilient and equitable food system. In mid- March, as a result of COVID-19, City agencies had to adapt to new ways of serving New Yorkers. In most instances, in-person programming and meal provision halted. As such, this year’s report captures data between July 2019 and February 2020. Also included in this report is a summary of the COVID-19 food efforts between March and June 2020. It should be noted that the Food Metrics Report captures outputs rather than outcomes. As such, it shouldn’t be used to evaluate programs. Also, given the challenges of capturing data during the pandemic, this year’s data is not comparable to last year’s data. I would like to acknowledge the strong leadership of Mayor Bill de Blasio, our Deputy Mayors, and the many Commissioners and frontline agency staff that work around the clock to support the policies and services that advance our food system to support the health of all New Yorkers and our planet. Sincerely, Kate MacKenzie, M.S., R.D. Director The Mayor’s Office of Food Policy Photo Credit: Mayoral Photography Office 7 CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC FEEDING NEW YORKERS The Food Czar Team made a commitment that we would not allow the crisis of this virus to FOOD RESPONSE DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC become a crisis of hunger. In April, food insecurity estimates based on new unemployment claims and increased claims for HRA cash assistance and SNAP benefits, showed that The COVID-19 crisis has challenged New York City in many ways. Food - the way it gets food insecurity had potentially grown by nearly one million, from 1.1 million before the into our City, the way it moves around the City, and the way it gets into the hands of New pandemic to 2 million at its height. In response, the City stood up three programs. Yorkers - is one of them. GetFood Emergency Home Food Deliveries An interagency “Food Czar Team,” was assembled to confront these challenges head- on. The team involved staff from the Mayor’s Office of Food Policy, Department of A central element of the COVID-19 food response is the Emergency Home Food Delivery Sanitation, Emergency Management, New York City Economic Development Corporation, program. In the beginning of the pandemic, thousands of taxi drivers, short of work due to Department of Transportation, Taxi and Limousine Commission, and many others. This the pandemic, signed up to be paid to deliver free meals to any New Yorker who cannot go team approached two distinct problems: 1) the need to combat food insecurity caused by out, has no one to go out for them, and cannot afford private delivery options. Operating the pandemic, and 2) the need to secure and protect the City’s food supply chain. out of approximately 10 distribution hubs across the city (sites like the Kingsbridge Armory or Al Oerter Rec Center), these taxi drivers were at the height of the pandemic On April 15, Mayor de Blasio and the Food Czar team released “Feeding New York,” to delivering over one million meals per day. In addition to a standard meal, vegetarian, outline the programs already set in place to meet the needs of food insecure New Yorkers Kosher, and Halal options were available. Through June, 61 million meals were delivered as well as plans to make a $25M investment in the City’s pantry system, secure the food to the homes of New Yorkers. supply chain, and establish an emergency food reserve. Photo Credit: Mayoral Photography Office Photo Credit: Mayoral Photography Office Grab-n-Go Meals When New York City schools shut down in March, students no longer had consistent access to high quality breakfast and lunch every weekday. In a matter of days, more than 500 school sites opened up to serve any New Yorker, including adults, no questions asked. The program steadily distributed over 2 million meals per week. Between March and June, 32 million meals were distributed through public schools. 8 9 The team also worked to monitor the spread of COVID-19 in areas that supply food to New York City, and respond appropriately to regional outbreaks. This prevented repeats of the supply chain disruptions seen early in the pandemic, when staples like flour and lentils were difficult to find. AN ONGOING COMMITMENT Demand for emergency home delivered meals reached its height in late June, and has leveled off and steadily declined ever since as the city has reopened. That said, since March, HRA has had three times as many applications for SNAP benefits and twice as many applications for cash assistance as in the three months prior. The agency has received 113,617 more applications than in the same period last year, a 140% increase. It is clear that the need persists, and we will do whatever we can to support New Yorkers with access to nutritious, high-quality food. Photo Credit: Mayoral Photography Office Coordinating Food and Funds to Food Pantries New York City’s network of soup kitchens and food pantries not only faced extraordinary demand resulting from COVID-19, but also had to quickly adapt to new ways of operating. Many sites experienced program closures due to the pause order, had to institute new social distancing requirements, and had difficulties recruiting and retaining volunteers. To support these efforts, the Food Czar Team distributed $25 million in direct funding assistance. Funding could be used for food, operational expenses related to the COVID-19 response; supplies, including PPE and food packaging; staffing; transportation for meal delivery; costs to support pop-up emergency feeding distribution; equipment for expanded operations; technology costs related to COVID-19; and outreach related to benefits enrollment. Photo Credit: Mayoral Photography Office PROTECTING OUR SUPPLY CHAIN At the same time, the Food Czar Team was enacting a separate workstream to monitor and protect our food supply chain. Because of the high cost of long-term storage in the city, at any given time, the five boroughs are estimated to only have enough food on hand for approximately five days. As such, we made certain to have a clear line of sight into the food supply coming into the city. New York is home to approximately 40,000 unique points of food sale – everything from wholesale markets to corner bodegas. The Food Czar team worked with representatives from food businesses of all sizes, ensuring their staff had access to PPE, helping to promote appropriate distancing, and engaging in public information campaigns about price gouging. 10 11 Food insecurity is the lack of access, at times, to enough nutritionally adequate food for an active, healthy life for all members of a household. Food insecure families may worry that food will run out before they have enough money to buy more, eat less than they should, or be unable to afford to eat balanced meals. New York City is working towards becoming a city where everyone has enough nutritious food to eat, through a range of initiatives in partnership with community-based and nonprofit organizations. Understanding that poverty is the root cause of food insecurity, New York City has taken action to increase New Yorkers’ earning potential and reduce the cost of living. Each year, the City designates tax-levied dollars for the City’s own emergency food program, making New York City a leader in prioritizing food access for those most in need. The City has worked to make it easier to access benefits programs by investing in SNAP outreach, language access services, and mobile platforms that streamline processes. Indicator: Food Insecurity PART 1. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) monitors the extent and severity ADDRESSING FOOD INSECURITY of food insecurity in U.S. households through an annual, nationally representative survey. There were 1.1 million New Yorkers who were food insecure during 2018. Each IN NEW YORK CITY year, the City designates City Tax-Levied (CTL) dollars for the City’s own emergency food program, making New York City a leader in prioritizing food access for those most in need.