Fulfill Expands Fresh Food Access with Donation of Refrigerated Vans to Local Pantries
New fleet strengthens food rescue efforts across Monmouth and Ocean Counties
Toms River, NJ – Fulfill is strengthening the local hunger relief network by donating five new refrigerated 2024 Ford Transit vans to partner food pantries, dramatically increasing their ability to rescue and distribute fresh food throughout Monmouth and Ocean Counties.
Funded through Feeding America Retail Capacity Building Grant, the refrigerated vans will create a direct connection between the pantries and local grocery retailers. With increased capacity for larger and more frequent retail pickups, pantry partners will be able to place more high-quality, fresh food onto their shelves, while retailers simultaneously reduce food waste. The awarded pantries were chosen for their ability to make regular pickups of food donations with the vehicle, and their proximity to grocery retailers with ready donations of food to rescue.
The five food pantries that received vans are:
- Bradley Food Pantry – Neptune City
- Our Lady of Guadalupe – Lakewood
- The Hope Center – Toms River
- Starve Poverty – Barnegat
- Seeds of Service – Brick
“Today, more than 130,000 of our Monmouth and Ocean County neighbors rely on our pantry network for food assistance. This is not just the awarding of a vehicle, but also of a donor relationship that will provide a critical lifeline for our partners and the communities they serve for years to come,” said Triada Stampas, President & CEO of Fulfill. “These vans strengthen our ability to move food where it’s needed most, turning surplus into nourishing meals and helping ensure our neighbors don’t have to face hunger alone.”
Every month, Fulfill and its network of partner pantries provide enough food for approximately 1.3 million meals to neighbors across Monmouth and Ocean Counties. The rising cost of food and other basic needs has more than doubled the demand for food assistance over the past five years.
Each of the five van recipients will be paired with local food retailers, enabling surplus food to be moved from retailers to pantries efficiently, while addressing the ongoing need for fresh produce, frozen goods, meats and bakery items in the community.
“Partnerships are key to fighting hunger, and thanks to the Feeding America Retail Capacity Building Grant, these vans allow our pantries to work hand-in-hand with retailers to rescue more fresh food, reduce waste and serve more neighbors than ever before,” said Jonathan Rowe, Vice President of Operations at Fulfill. “By strengthening these connections, we’re building a more efficient and resilient food network that benefits everyone.”
Fulfill’s first round of vehicle grants in early 2024 has already shown strong results. Within their first full year, the five awarded pantries (Freehold Area Open Door Pantry; Faith Community Food Pantry in Bayville; St. Brigid’s Pantry and Kitchen at St. James Episcopal Church in Long Branch; Jackson Women of Today Food Pantry; and St. Luke’s Toms River Food Pantry) collectively increased their supply of donated food from retail pick-ups by approximately 30,000 pounds, a more than 20 percent increase from the prior year. Now in their second year, the 2024 cohort is on track to increase their supply of donated food yet again, this time by approximately 55,000 pounds from their 2023 levels, a bump of approximately 40 percent, and considerably outpacing the 29% average gains in the charitable food network overall in that same period of time.
“The van truly transformed our operations, allowing us the opportunity to become far more self-sufficient,” said Geralyn Fraggetta-Drury, Executive Director of pantry partner Freehold Area Open Door and a 2024 van recipient. “We’re now able to manage our regular retail pickups as well as larger private donations. We no longer have to turn away food. We finally have the means to transport it, allowing us to better serve our neighbors.”
The vehicle grants represent a major investment in supporting a strong pantry network, which is core to Fulfill’s strategy to build food security in Monmouth and Ocean Counties. Fulfill has made grants to its pantry partners in response to their capacity needs every year since 2013, helping its network of charity partners rebuild in the aftermath of Super Storm Sandy.
“This van donation is just one more step toward food security in our communities,” said Stampas. “The community’s need for food keeps growing and we must be in a position to keep up with the demand. We will continue to create meaningful programs that result in all-around wins – wins for our pantry partners, our retail network and our neighbors in need.”
For more information on Fulfill’s programs and how to support them, visit https://fulfillnj.org/.
Please see the attached Dropbox link for event photos and video footage.
About Fulfill
Fulfill, the food bank Monmouth and Ocean Counties, has been dedicated to addressing hunger in the Jersey Shore community since 1984. As an active member of Feeding America, Fulfill proudly works with a network of nearly 300 partners, including soup kitchens, food pantries, and shelters to provide 1.3 million meals per month to area residents, families, children, seniors, and veterans in need. Committed to more than just food distribution, Fulfill also offers connections to affordable healthcare options, Medicaid, SNAP benefit assistance programs, and other services to help neighbors lead healthy and self-sufficient lives. To learn more or become involved, visit www.fulfillnj.org.
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