Food in Need of Distribution, Inc.

FIND's goal is to end hunger today, tomorrow, and for a lifetime. Ultimately, we aim to give our clients the tools to reach self-sufficiency. Today, FIND feeds an average of 150,000 individuals, families, children, seniors, and veterans each month. Our 150 distribution sites include over 80 community agency partnerships (soup kitchens, religious organizations, local nonprofits) and 44 community mobile markets that serve food deserts and low-income areas. FIND's two distribution centers strategically located in the Hi-Desert and Coachella Valley help achieve their mission and vision of equitable food distribution for all. To end hunger for tomorrow, FIND offers outreach services that connect residents to benefits programs that improve financial security. FIND works to end hunger for a lifetime by identifying the root causes of hunger to break cycles of food insecurity and ensure self-sufficiency.

As the largest hunger-relief and food rescue organization in the desert region, FIND works to eliminate food waste by rescuing fresh produce, non-perishable goods, and any other food items before they are discarded by major distributors, grocery stores, local growers, and individuals. Our goal every year is to ensure that 50% of our total poundage of food distributed is fresh produce because this improves the mental, physical, emotional, health, and socioeconomic outcomes of those facing food insecurity which helps break cycles of poverty. FIND prioritizes addressing the social determinants of food insecurity by improving access to private and public benefits to increase financial security to support the progression to self-sufficiency. Diving deeper into the root causes of hunger through nationwide and localized research provides strategies to shorten food lines and ultimately end hunger for a lifetime.

To end hunger for today:
FIND is a healthy food bank, meaning we ensure that 40-50% of our food distributions are fresh produce. To help over 88 community agency partners serve their individual clients and community, FIND provides the food to over 88 community agency partners to help these organizations better serve their client's individual needs to help them break the cycles of poverty. We distribute food directly in communities without access to healthy, affordable food within 3 miles through our 44 drive-thru community mobile markets. Their strategic locations across the desert region allow us to provide hunger relief specifically for children and seniors. We provide direct distributions with specific strategies to overcome barriers to reaching underserved populations such as migrant farmworkers in the eastern Coachella Valley and immunocompromised or homebound clients by delivering fresh groceries directly to their doorstep.
The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) - The emergency food assistance program
is the federal USDA food commodities program administered through the State of California.
As a contractor to the state of California for this program, FIND utilizes 19 of its agency partners' networks and its 44 community mobile markets to ensure the equitable distribution of these food items to the community. TEFAP accounts for approximately 40% of FIND's food supply.
Disaster Food Distribution - FIND is the Coachella Valley Desert's Regional Food Bank
recognized by both the state and county as the main supplier of disaster food distribution to
the community.
To End Hunger for Tomorrow:
CalFresh Outreach - A client outreach program that provides education, application, and enrollment support
for clients to access USDA CalFresh benefits to purchase food at local grocery stores. During
the year ended June 30, 2020, FIND enrolled 2,573 clients in this program.
Community Health Workers (CHW) - FIND's CHW program is designed to help clients access
other support services that can help provide monetary support in other areas such as rental and
utility assistance, MediCal insurance, job training, and placement services, freeing up
resources to help them purchase food independently.
To End Hunger for a Lifetime:
This suite of programs is designed to support clients' access to food through other programs besides direct food distributions. The purpose of these programs is to support the clients increased self-sufficiency in accessing food to help them thrive.
Advocacy - FIND advocacy serves an important role in informing stakeholders about the
importance of partnership between public and private efforts to address hunger.
Community Nutrition Education - FIND provides nutrition, food safety, and food handling
training and support materials for clients and partner agencies to ensure a lifelong
understanding that through health, individuals have a better ability to achieve long term self-sufficiency