The Food Trust is requesting proposals for the 2025–2026 Pennsylvania Fresh Food Financing Initiative.
Donor Name: The Food Trust
State: Pennsylvania
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 11/01/2025
Size of the Grant: $500,000 to $1 million
Grant Duration: Grant Duration Not Mentioned
Details:
The purpose of PA FFFI is to improve access to healthy produce and groceries in low- to moderate-income (LMI) areas, create and preserve quality jobs, and revitalize communities by providing financial assistance to projects that focus on healthy retail.
The PA FFFI is a statewide public-private financing program that invests in new or expanding grocery stores and other healthy food retail outlets in communities throughout Pennsylvania. The PA FFFI provides one-time grants and loans to food retailers to increase access to healthy, affordable grocery food options and to improve economic opportunities for low access communities across the Commonwealth.
Program Objectives
- Contribute to better health outcomes by improving access to fresh foods;
- Stimulate investment of private capital in LMI communities;
- Remove financing obstacles and operating barriers for grocery stores and other healthy food retail in LMI communities;
- Strengthen the local food system and increase market opportunities for PA farmers;
- Support the creation and preservation of quality, living wage jobs; and
- Create and retain a qualified workforce.
Overseen by the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED), the PA FFFI is administered by The Food Trust in partnership with three Pennsylvania-based community development financial institutions (CDFIs): Reinvestment Fund, Finanta and Bridgeway Capital.
Priorities
Priority will be given to projects that:
- Are located in areas that have low-access to financial institutions and small business resources
- Are located in areas that have high rates of food insecurity
- Are new or expanding grocery stores or other healthy food retail outlets
- Have a demonstrated history of including local communities and customers into its operations and business development
- Source and sell food that is grown, raised or harvested in Pennsylvania
- Hire employees from the surrounding neighborhoods
- Pay living wages.
- Provide customer access to business through means of public transportation, if available
- Align with existing plans and goals of the local government and community residents
Funding Information
For this funding cycle, $800,000.
Uses of Funds
Eligible projects should execute activities that will contribute to the sale of affordable, healthy foods by the completion of the project. The following activities are allowable uses of PA FFFI funds:
- Business/technical assistance
- Land acquisition
- Predevelopment costs: market/feasibility studies, architectural designs, business planning/consultants, project management and/or marketing, as long as the expense is not recurring
- Land assembly, including demolition and environmental remediation
- Site development
- Infrastructure improvement, including renovation, new construction or adaptive reuse
- Equipment purchases that improve the availability and quality of store offerings
- Innovative food access technology that assists the healthy food access efforts of an existing or new grocery store
Eligible Projects
To be eligible for this initiative, applicants must propose a project that demonstrates the following criteria:
- Located in Pennsylvania
- Independently owned and operated
- Improve food access for LMI shoppers in places where there is not currently adequate access
- Sell a variety of affordable, high-quality fresh produce, or a combination of fresh produce and other healthy grocery items, such as whole grains, dairy, fresh meat and other proteins
- Accept or demonstrate plans to accept SNAP and/or WIC to the maximum extent possible (or have connection to retailers that will accept them)
- Demonstrate a path to profitability/financial sustainability
- Apply with a defined location, service area or customer base
- Demonstrate strong engagement and support from local residents and a commitment to providing a positive economic and social impact to the local community
- Include an experienced manager on the team, with experience managing a similar healthy food project
- Serve customers who live in an LMI area, by locating in an LMI census tract or demonstrating that a significant number of customers reside in LMI areas
Eligibility Criteria
This initiative will provide grants to existing healthy food retailers, food retail supply chain entities, and planned ventures in LMI areas. Grants will support the creation and/or expansion of projects designed to improve access to fresh, healthy and affordable foods ultimately for retail sale. The initiative aims to support a variety of business models and organizations working to improve food security in their communities.
- Eligible Organizations
- Business enterprises (such as corporations, Limited Liability Companies (LLCs) and sole proprietorships)
- Cooperatively owned businesses or managed ventures
- Tax-exempt nonprofit corporations
Individuals are not eligible.
- Eligible Locations
- To be eligible, applicants must be located in Pennsylvania and propose a project that directly involves or contributes to retail operations in low-access areas of Pennsylvania. This includes areas that have limited access to healthy, affordable foods including fresh fruits and vegetables, dairy, meats, grains and other staple foods, and have high rates of poverty and food insecurity.
- Eligible areas must:
- Serve a low to moderate income (LMI) area with a Median Family Income equal to or below 80% of median local income levels
- Serve a community that lacks adequate grocery retail
- And/or have high poverty rates, above 20%.
- Eligible areas must:
For more information, visit The Food Trust.
