PLATINUM2024

Food Bank of South Jersey Inc

Food Nutrition Sustainability

aka Food Bank of South Jersey   |   Pennsauken, NJ   |  www.foodbanksj.org

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GuideStar Charity Check

Food Bank of South Jersey Inc

EIN: 22-2623089


Mission

The Food Bank of South Jersey exists to provide an immediate solution to the urgent problem of hunger by providing food to people in need, teaching them to eat nutritiously, and helping them to find sustainable ways to improve their lives.

Notes from the nonprofit

The Food Bank of South Jersey exists to provide an immediate solution to the urgent problem of hunger by providing food to people in need, teaching them to eat nutritiously, and helping them to find sustainable ways to improve their lives. We like to say we are not just the Food Bank of South Jersey…we are the Food Bank FOR South Jersey. We are the largest provider of emergency food assistance in Burlington, Camden, Gloucester, and Salem counties. We’ve been serving our neighbors in South Jersey since 1985. Of the people we serve, 33% are children under age 18, 54% are adults aged 18 to 64 and the remaining 13% are seniors over 65. The three pillars of our work are: - Alleviating hunger by providing healthy food to those in need - Providing information and education on how to eat nutritiously - Helping people find sustainable ways to improve their lives

Ruling year info

1986

President & CEO

Fred C. Wasiak

Main address

1501 John Tipton Blvd

Pennsauken, NJ 08110 USA

Show more contact info

EIN

22-2623089

Subject area info

Food aid

Population served info

Children and youth

Families

Adults

NTEE code info

Food Service, Free Food Distribution Programs (K30)

Food Banks, Food Pantries (K31)

What we aim to solve

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

In the United States today, there are over 40 million food-insecure people. Food insecurity refers to USDA’s measure of lack of access, at times, to enough food for an active, healthy life for all household members and limited or uncertain availability of nutritionally adequate foods. Food-insecure households are not necessarily food insecure all the time. Food insecurity may reflect a household’s need to make trade-offs between important basic needs, such as housing or medical bills, and purchasing nutritionally adequate foods. What does food insecurity look like in New Jersey? Today, there are more than 865,900 people living with food insecurity in New Jersey. Of these, 260,340 are children. In South Jersey, more than 136,750 people – 1 in 9 adults and 1 in every 8 children – are struggling with food insecurity in Burlington, Camden, Gloucester and Salem counties alone. The total number of food-insecure children living in this four-county region is 38,890.

Our programs

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?

Kids Thrive 365

The Food Bank of South Jersey children’s programs, or Kids Thrive 365, are designed specifically to combat the child hunger problem. Hunger impacts a child’s ability to learn, sleep well, grow and develop properly.

Afterschool Snack Pack (formerly Kids Café)- An afterschool snack program that offers healthy snacks to help meet the nutritional needs of children who may have little to no food to eat between their school lunch and school breakfast the next morning. 

Weekend Meal Pack (formerly KidzPack)- A supplemental meals program that provides pre-packed meals to children to take home every weekend, when they do not have access to free and reduced meals at school. The backpack includes 5 meals that are distributed weekly on Fridays, runs for 30 weeks.

School Pantry- A pantry program through which nutritious food is delivered monthly to selected schools to support children and their families. 

Population(s) Served
Children and youth

The SNRS (Senior Nutrition Resource Supplement) Program is a privately run supplemental food initiative for low-income seniors who are 60 years of age or older and self-declare the need for food assistance. This is a program fully funded by FBSJ, giving us the autonomy and flexibility to pivot in response to our seniors' needs and requests. This monthly food distribution provides approximately a 2-week supply of groceries based on seniors' nutritional needs.  The program currently supplies a box of shelf-stable items and a box of fresh produce and dairy totaling approximately 30 lbs. of food.

Population(s) Served
Seniors

Our Summer Meals Program supplies two meals daily, Monday through Friday, for 10 weeks of the school summer intercession. FBSJ distributes meals to its wide network of partner agencies and sites in target areas of high food insecurity and poverty, where racial and ethnic minorities are generally overrepresented.

FBSJ has been serving children in its four-county service area of Burlington, Camden, Gloucester, and Salem counties filling a critical gap when school is out of session to support children and their families who are experiencing food insecurity.

Population(s) Served
Children and youth

Hope Mobile food pantries provide monthly food distributions in neighborhoods designated as “food deserts.” By delivering trailer loads of healthy food to underserved populations, families can more easily access fresh produce and dairy as well as frozen proteins, which they would not otherwise be able to find or afford in their corner store.

FBSJ's School Pantry program works with school administrators and parent-teacher organizations to identify and directly assist families who can benefit most from deliveries of healthy, supplemental groceries. Through the pantry program, nutritious food is delivered monthly to selected schools to support children and their families.

Population(s) Served
Families
Economically disadvantaged people
Children and youth

The FBSJ Health and Wellness (H&W) department is FBSJ’s educational complement to our core feeding program. Through a combination of classroom instruction and cooking demonstration, H&W shares the value of nutrition awareness and empowers participants across our communities to adopt healthy eating behaviors.

Cooking Matters® programs offered in partnership with Share Our Strength, consist of classes with content tailored for children, teens, and families. In partnership with Oldways, H&W offers an adult curriculum that embraces healthy, cultural eating traditions with courses such as A Taste of African Heritage and A Taste of Latin American Heritage. These hands-on lessons transfer skills that enable those with limited means to become smarter shoppers and to make nutritious meals from basic foods.

Population(s) Served
Adults
Adolescents
Preteens
Children
Economically disadvantaged people

Where we work

Awards

Four Star Rating 2022

Charity Navigator

Our results

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.

Number of meals served or provided

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Population(s) Served

Children and youth

Related Program

Summer Meals

Type of Metric

Output - describing our activities and reach

Direction of Success

Decreasing

Context Notes

Meals provided to children facing hunger during the summer months when school is not in session.

Total number of classes offered

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Related Program

Health and Wellness

Type of Metric

Output - describing our activities and reach

Direction of Success

Increasing

Context Notes

Nutrition education sessions: Interactive classroom instructions and hands-on cooking demonstrations that promote healthy eating.

Number of participants attending course/session/workshop

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Related Program

Health and Wellness

Type of Metric

Output - describing our activities and reach

Direction of Success

Increasing

Context Notes

Children, adults and seniors who participated in FBSJ's various health and wellness courses.

Number of meals delivered

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Population(s) Served

Adults, Children and youth, Families

Type of Metric

Output - describing our activities and reach

Direction of Success

Increasing

Context Notes

Number of meals distributed through FBSJ's Feed More and direct service programs to communities across a four-county service area.

Our Sustainable Development Goals

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.

Goals & Strategy

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.

Charting impact

Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.

FBSJ’s vision starts with a clear identity of who we are as an organization, who we want to be and the aspirations we have for South Jersey. At the heart of our institution is the belief that no person – young or old – should go hungry due to a lack of the financial resources required to purchase sufficient, healthy food. Essential to powering our lives, nourishing food should never feel like a choice, and for the reported 136,750 South Jersey residents struggling with food insecurity, it is. Therefore, the primary aim of FBSJ is to reroute the trajectory of these citizens’ lives by creating a food-secure community in which residents thrive and live a life of dignity, purpose and vitality.

Beyond addressing the direct implications of food insecurity through hunger-relief programs, FBSJ’s short- and long-term plan creates a roadmap for evolving with the needs of the community and economic landscape. FBSJ will strive to maintain the perfect balance between serving with compassion and streamlining its operation to maximize productivity and effectiveness.

As FBSJ settles into a new decade, capitalizing on its distinct competitive advantages will position the organization for continued success. Investing in its workforce, the dedicated and highly-skilled staff who execute the mission; investing in technology that promotes transparency and efficiency; investing in infrastructure aimed at fostering a donor-centered institution, are all operational facets that lay the foundation for a sustainable South Jersey.

Armed with a clear vision of deepening, strengthening and expanding our role as South Jersey’s leading hunger-relief organization, the staff, board, partner-agencies and key stakeholders embarked on a Real Time strategic planning process that will guide and shape the future of FBSJ based on the four outlined pillars.

1. Further deepen our engagement with stakeholders, donors and community partners
2. Optimize and modernize our current resources
3. Build capacity to close the Hunger Gap
4. Proactively seek opportunities and identify future challenges

Central to the Food Bank of South Jersey’s vision and new strategic plan, is eliminating the barriers that hinder access to nourishing food and building greater capacity to close the hunger gap. This plan builds upon the organization’s long-standing 35-year history of being a
steady, reliable resource for residents facing instability. An efficient, nimble and resourceful infrastructure will strengthen FBSJ’s proficiency in distributing food to individuals, seniors, children and families struggling with food insecurity through a myriad of systems that include
its network of over 200 partner-agencies and versatile direct service programs.

FOOD
Distributing food to people in need is the entry point of fulfilling our mission. FBSJ is the largest source of government and non-government food assistance that supports the unique geographic landscape – urban, suburban and rural – of South Jersey. In order to support our vision of people living healthy thriving lives, FBSJ seeks to continue playing a key role in improving equitable access to nutritious food for all communities in South Jersey.

NUTRITION
Eat Well. Move Well. Feel Well. The second part of our mission is the educational complement to our core feeding program. The vision for Health and Wellness is to increase consumption of healthy foods by educating families and individuals on how to select and prepare affordable nutritious foods for family meals and snacks. Through a combination of interactive classroom instruction and hands-on
cooking demonstration, FBSJ’s Health and Wellness department shares the value of nutrition awareness and empowers participants across our communities to adopt healthy eating behaviors.

SUSTAINABILITY
Leveraging our competitive advantages of credibility, visionary leadership and organizational flexibility, the third mandate paves the way for a food bank that’s equipped to innovate, tackle challenges and respond to future opportunities. We are sustainable by being fiscally responsible, innovative with our programming and by adopting technological advances that improve operational efficiencies. Included in FBSJ’s plan is creating solutions such as workforce training that will help break the cycle of poverty and food insecurity for residents.

As the region’s largest source of government and non-government food assistance supporting the unique geographic landscape – urban, suburban and rural – of South Jersey, FBSJ works collaboratively with a cross-section of partners including municipalities, educational institutions, community organizations and the over 200 local pantries that play a vital role in the execution of the mission to feed South Jersey.

Accomplishments thus far:
Converted over 50 pantries to the choice-model thereby promoting stronger nutrition acumen and healthier habits.
Developed and implemented food waste reduction principles into nutrition programming and healthy eating initiatives.
Increased the distribution of (healthier) Foods to Encourage (FTE) by eight percentage points.
Added pop-up distributions in all four counties in an effort to eliminate barriers to food access.
Refined the meal composition of the children's meals to include higher quality foods.

How we listen

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.

done We demonstrated a willingness to learn more by reviewing resources about feedback practice.
done We shared information about our current feedback practices.
  • How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?

    To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals

  • Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?

    We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We take steps to get feedback from marginalized or under-represented people, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We act on the feedback we receive

  • What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?

    It is difficult to get the people we serve to respond to requests for feedback, The people we serve tell us they find data collection burdensome

Revenue vs. expenses:  breakdown

SOURCE: IRS Form 990 info
NET GAIN/LOSS:    in 
Note: When component data are not available, the graph displays the total Revenue and/or Expense values.

Liquidity in 2023 info

SOURCE: IRS Form 990

3.25

Average of 1.38 over 10 years

Months of cash in 2023 info

SOURCE: IRS Form 990

2.9

Average of 2 over 10 years

Fringe rate in 2023 info

SOURCE: IRS Form 990

26%

Average of 27% over 10 years

Funding sources info

Source: IRS Form 990

Assets & liabilities info

Source: IRS Form 990

Financial data

SOURCE: IRS Form 990

Food Bank of South Jersey Inc

Revenue & expenses

Fiscal Year: Jan 01 - Dec 31

SOURCE: IRS Form 990 info

Fiscal year ending: cloud_download Download Data

Food Bank of South Jersey Inc

Balance sheet

Fiscal Year: Jan 01 - Dec 31

SOURCE: IRS Form 990 info

The balance sheet gives a snapshot of the financial health of an organization at a particular point in time. An organization's total assets should generally exceed its total liabilities, or it cannot survive long, but the types of assets and liabilities must also be considered. For instance, an organization's current assets (cash, receivables, securities, etc.) should be sufficient to cover its current liabilities (payables, deferred revenue, current year loan, and note payments). Otherwise, the organization may face solvency problems. On the other hand, an organization whose cash and equivalents greatly exceed its current liabilities might not be putting its money to best use.

Fiscal year ending: cloud_download Download Data

Food Bank of South Jersey Inc

Financial trends analysis Glossary & formula definitions

Fiscal Year: Jan 01 - Dec 31

SOURCE: IRS Form 990 info

This snapshot of Food Bank of South Jersey Inc’s financial trends applies Nonprofit Finance Fund® analysis to data hosted by GuideStar. While it highlights the data that matter most, remember that context is key – numbers only tell part of any story.

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Business model indicators

Profitability info 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Unrestricted surplus (deficit) before depreciation $1,193,218 $6,404,183 $3,709,235 $1,041,728 $5,151,450
As % of expenses 5.1% 18.3% 11.4% 2.9% 11.8%
Unrestricted surplus (deficit) after depreciation $930,391 $6,096,645 $3,306,592 $601,133 $4,626,630
As % of expenses 4.0% 17.3% 10.0% 1.7% 10.4%
Revenue composition info
Total revenue (unrestricted & restricted) $24,479,782 $42,494,630 $35,639,314 $36,941,915 $48,610,335
Total revenue, % change over prior year 33.9% 73.6% -16.1% 3.7% 31.6%
Program services revenue 5.0% 3.7% 2.0% 1.9% 1.3%
Membership dues 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0%
Investment income 0.0% 0.1% 0.2% 0.1% 0.6%
Government grants 48.9% 50.3% 51.1% 39.3% 48.9%
All other grants and contributions 45.7% 45.8% 46.8% 58.7% 49.2%
Other revenue 0.4% 0.1% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0%
Expense composition info
Total expenses before depreciation $23,286,564 $35,020,758 $32,612,848 $35,550,381 $43,811,669
Total expenses, % change over prior year 32.7% 50.4% -6.9% 9.0% 23.2%
Personnel 12.9% 11.1% 14.2% 16.0% 15.7%
Professional fees 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0%
Occupancy 0.9% 0.8% 1.1% 1.0% 1.2%
Interest 0.5% 0.3% 0.3% 0.1% 0.0%
Pass-through 0.0% 0.0% 1.9% 0.4% 0.0%
All other expenses 85.8% 87.9% 82.4% 82.6% 83.1%
Full cost components (estimated) info 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Total expenses (after depreciation) $23,549,391 $35,328,296 $33,015,491 $35,990,976 $44,336,489
One month of savings $1,940,547 $2,918,397 $2,717,737 $2,962,532 $3,650,972
Debt principal payment $90,339 $93,652 $101,872 $2,287,919 $0
Fixed asset additions $0 $710,505 $878,794 $0 $3,898,328
Total full costs (estimated) $25,580,277 $39,050,850 $36,713,894 $41,241,427 $51,885,789

Capital structure indicators

Liquidity info 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Months of cash 0.5 3.1 4.3 4.2 2.9
Months of cash and investments 0.5 3.1 4.3 4.4 3.2
Months of estimated liquid unrestricted net assets 1.9 3.2 4.4 3.5 3.2
Balance sheet composition info 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Cash $1,026,634 $9,059,648 $11,717,348 $12,565,435 $10,718,275
Investments $0 $0 $0 $611,628 $870,799
Receivables $1,348,531 $1,362,138 $591,900 $1,191,729 $569,399
Gross land, buildings, equipment (LBE) $6,780,978 $7,489,302 $8,344,766 $8,662,582 $12,517,515
Accumulated depreciation (as a % of LBE) 40.3% 40.5% 40.9% 44.5% 34.6%
Liabilities (as a % of assets) 39.4% 30.1% 22.5% 27.5% 14.5%
Unrestricted net assets $5,248,071 $11,344,716 $14,651,308 $15,252,441 $19,879,071
Temporarily restricted net assets N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Permanently restricted net assets N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Total restricted net assets $85,000 $1,154,689 $471,920 $785,109 $591,459
Total net assets $5,333,071 $12,499,405 $15,123,228 $16,037,550 $20,470,530

Key data checks

Key data checks info 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Material data errors No No No No No

Operations

The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.

Documents
Form 1023/1024 is not available for this organization

President & CEO

Fred C. Wasiak

Fred C. Wasiak was named president and CEO of the Food Bank of South Jersey (FBSJ) in 2018; he oversees all aspects of the organization, including financial sustainability, operational efficiency, community engagement, advocacy, staff enrichment and board development. Established in 1985 with the mission to provide an immediate solution to the urgent problem of food insecurity, FBSJ continues the mandate to alleviate hunger by eliminating barriers to food access and offering relevant programming and resources that seek to improve the lives of impacted residents. As an accomplished executive with over 35 years of management and leadership experience, Fred is steering FBSJ, the leading hunger-relief organization in the southern region of New Jersey, into a future that builds upon the organization’s core competencies while paving the way for innovation and sustainability.

Number of employees

Source: IRS Form 990

Food Bank of South Jersey Inc

Officers, directors, trustees, and key employees

SOURCE: IRS Form 990

Compensation
Other
Related
Show data for fiscal year
Compensation data
Download up to 5 most recent years of officer and director compensation data for this organization

There are no highest paid employees recorded for this organization.

Food Bank of South Jersey Inc

Board of directors
as of 07/24/2024
SOURCE: Self-reported by organization
Board of directors data
Download the most recent year of board of directors data for this organization
Board co-chair

Ms. Suzanne Ghee

Thrive Public Affairs

Term: 2023 - 2024


Board co-chair

Mr. Douglas Schaeffer

Woodforest National Bank

Term: 2023 - 2024

Altheia LeDuc

Megan Shea

Jeffrey Hayman

Frank Plum

Philip Bartholomew

Darlene Trappier

Michael Matheis

Neal Walters

Carol Strock

Georgia Dennis

Maria Siegel

Kim Andreola

Elias Bitar

Desiree Martins

Board leadership practices

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.

  • Board orientation and education
    Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes
  • CEO oversight
    Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes
  • Ethics and transparency
    Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes
  • Board composition
    Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes
  • Board performance
    Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes

Organizational demographics

SOURCE: Self-reported; last updated 7/24/2024

Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.

Leadership

The organization's leader identifies as:

Race & ethnicity
White/Caucasian/European
Gender identity
Male, Not transgender
Sexual orientation
Heterosexual or Straight
Disability status
Person without a disability

Race & ethnicity

Gender identity

Transgender Identity

Sexual orientation

No data

Disability

No data

Equity strategies

Last updated: 07/01/2022

GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more

Data
  • We review compensation data across the organization (and by staff levels) to identify disparities by race.
  • We ask team members to identify racial disparities in their programs and / or portfolios.
  • We disaggregate data to adjust programming goals to keep pace with changing needs of the communities we support.
  • We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
Policies and processes
  • We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
  • We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
  • We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
  • We measure and then disaggregate job satisfaction and retention data by race, function, level, and/or team.
  • We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.

Contractors

Fiscal year ending

Professional fundraisers

Fiscal year ending

SOURCE: IRS Form 990 Schedule G

Solicitation activities
Gross receipts from fundraising
Retained by organization
Paid to fundraiser