Food Love by Might Be Vegan is helping low-income communities get direct-to-door access to healthy, plant-based food. With the current crisis, the health of Black and Latino communities are disproportionately impacted. This is because they have less access to nutrient-rich foods and quality healthcare. While it may seem like there’s not much we can do to help, wait until you hear the inspiring ways this plant-based program is giving back!
Food Love by Might Be Vegan is an initiative that was created in April to support impacted communities and safely get them plant-based food. While food banks are a great way to help those in need, they require volunteers, transportation, identification, and social interaction. It can be hard for some people to get the groceries they need due to lack of transportation and identification––or from fear of interacting with people given the current situation.
Food Love founder, Kimberly Barnes shared, “Having worked at and partnered with food banks in the past, I know the types of foods that are often provided to those in need. Non-perishable goods, often laden with salt, are the top of the list. And an excess of salt is certainly not helpful for someone with hypertension, for example. So the question became, how do we get healthy, fresh food to those in need and in the communities that are currently being underserved. I wanted to be a part of the solution. But I needed to figure out how to do that while also staying safe myself. That's how Food Love was born.”
Food Love aims to eliminate social interactions by partnering with meal delivery services to safely transport vegan meals to those in need. First they team up with community organizers and public health workers to identify people who need assistance. Then, volunteers from Might Be Vegan match plant-based companies with the receiving groups to get meals delivered straight to their door!
Splendid Spoon and Boycemode are two of the plant-based meal delivery companies that send weekly donations to families on an ongoing basis. Food Love also works with technology brands like Autopilot and Airtable to help with logistics and automation.
And not only does Food Love send nutritious vegan meals to needy families, they also provide educational materials with information and tips on how to eat more plants and transition to plant-based eating. “If introducing a family to plant-based eating in their time of need leads to them making steps to improve their health, gets them thinking about fruits and vegetables more intently, or deciding to go fully vegan, then I've done my part … not just for them, but for the environment, and for the animals,” stated Barnes.
So far, the program has served communities in 12 states, but they have hopes to spread their reach even further. To do so, they will need additional volunteers and individual financial contributors. If you are interested in volunteering (virtually) or making a monetary donation, please email foodlove@mightbevegan.co.
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