The Feed

Published by Nora Thomas

If you feel like recent months have been filled with bad news, you’re not alone. With inflating prices and a tough job market, it can be hard to stay positive. We’re watching our neighbors struggle, and can even find ourselves struggling. 

The truth is that the news can give us all tunnel vision to negativity. Being mindful about how we absorb news and take care of ourselves can help ground us and bring some optimism back. Here are 7 ways we’ve found to bring hope when times are hard.

1. Take Social Media Breaks

53% of adults get their news from social media now, according to PEW research from September 2025. It’s at the tip of our fingers and can keep us informed without the need to sit down to watch a news segment or read the newspaper. However, news is then absorbed less intentionally. While quickly checking social media throughout our busy days, we are bombarded with doom-ridden headlines. In fact, research shows that “news-related social media posts using negative language are re-posted more, rewarding users who produce negative content” (Watson et al, 2024).

Researchers have found a direct correlation between the frequency of news consumption and emotional distress. On the contrary, the emotional distress correlation was not found with viewers who engaged with more traditional news sources. Social media is unique in the way that it promotes negative and dramatic headlines to get more views, clicks, and reposts.

Professionals argue that it’s important to practice “media dietary restrictions” when engaging with news. When things seem overwhelming, consider taking a break from social media,  reducing the amount of news that shows up on your feed, or engaging with news in a more traditional, intentional way. 

Routines are proven to create a sense of calm and reduce stress and anxiety. They create stability and predictability, which is especially helpful in times of uncertainty. Sticking to a routine takes a lot of decision-making out of the day and reduces variability that can cause stress. Doing this also allows us to use energy for bigger, more difficult decisions. Additionally, strong routines can create better eating and sleeping habits. This will improve overall health and thus the ability to respond to stressful news.

When developing a routine, start small with a few goals you’d like to meet. From there, you can adjust what isn’t working and add on. According to Mental Health America, a healthy routine should prioritize a nutrition-rich diet, exercise, and sleep. You won’t notice a change immediately, so make feasible changes, be flexible, and give yourself grace. Sticking to a routine is difficult at first, but it can make it much easier to deal with difficult or negative things that come up. 

3. Make Room For Big Feelings

When news feels doom-ridden, it is easy to shut down or push away negative feelings. This makes us feel better in the short term, but actually hurts in the long run. When big feelings go unaddressed, they can bubble up and intensify. Addressing feelings as they come up helps to process, build resilience, and develop emotional strength. Researchers found that individuals who accept their negative feelings experience fewer negative emotions when daily stressors arise. This is critical when things feel overwhelmingly negative. When hard things come up, it’s unnatural to force feelings down and continue with the day. Practice allowing yourself to process negative emotions with no judgment for any feelings that arise. Lean on friends and community groups and speak up about the things that matter to you.

4. Make Time For The People And Things That You Love

Keeping up with life while processing negative news can be completely exhausting. Even when it seems impossible, it is so important to make time for the people and things you love. Prioritizing these things will improve your mood, mental health, sense of community, and energy. 

Surround yourself with the people you love. This is your support system. When times get hard, it’s so important to be able to lean on one another and talk through it. Instead of festering in the negativity, talk it out and let some of it go. According to Psychology Today, spending time with a friend can boost confidence and self-esteem and lower stress. Being there for one another is also how we nurture our community. 

Just like friendship, making time for activities you love can also boost your mood. It doesn’t matter what the activity is – doing something you enjoy can have great physical and mental benefits. Engaging in hobbies lowers blood pressure and stress and increases physical and psychological function. Furthermore, hobbies are a great way to find community in people with a shared interest. Practicing what you love is a form of self-care and helps to recharge. Add something that makes you happy to your routine. 

5. Find The Good

When things seem hopeless, it’s critical to remember that news companies benefit from sharing dramatic headlines because they get more attention. Just because it’s not in your daily news feed doesn’t mean there aren’t positive things happening. If there is a specific issue you care about, other people in your community are bound to care about this issue too! Matthew Price, psychology professor at the University of Vermont, says “to guard against patients becoming overwhelmed, and developing a sense of learned helplessness, psychologists can encourage them to become more proactive in healthy ways on the issues that matter to them.”

Look into the issues that matter to you, and find the good that people and organizations are already doing. Just knowing that people are working for good can boost a sense of hope, but this also opens up opportunities to get involved. 

6. Volunteer

Think of finding the good as step one, and volunteering as the follow-through. Not only does volunteering create a positive impact in the community, but it also has great benefits for the volunteer.

Research shows that volunteering improves general well-being and quality of life, especially for older adults. Participating in volunteer work regularly keeps your body and brain active and allows participants to find purpose, using their skills for things that matter to them. Furthermore, volunteering reduces stress and increases positive feelings, benefiting both physical and mental health. 

Volunteering also has positive social impacts. Engaging in volunteer work expands social networks and social skills and provides a strong sense of community. 

When things feel dark, volunteering can boost your sense of hope by showing you how many people in your community care. 

7. Give Back

Giving back in any form can improve health and happiness. There are scientifically proven benefits for the mind and body. Giving releases chemicals in the brain associated with good mood and sense of pleasure, including dopamine, serotonin, and oxytocin. Giving lowers blood pressure and cortisol levels, a chemical associated with stress. Plus, giving provides a sense of agency, warms our hearts, and deepens our community connections. 

Giving back can look like so many different things. Donations make a huge difference to non-profit organizations, big or small. Volunteering, whether it’s once in a blue moon or every week, is also incredibly impactful.

You can still give back even if you don’t have time or money to spare! Consider contributing by starting conversations and spreading awareness about important issues or organizations. Giving back doesn’t need to be a grand action that saves the world! Expand your perspective and give back in small acts of kindness, like making a meal for a neighbor, holding the door open, or just spreading some positivity. Things like these will make you feel better and make your community stronger. 

Find optimism!

Finding your community and prioritizing things that make you happy can make a world of difference when it comes to dealing with negativity and maintaining optimism.

If you want to get involved in food access, We Don’t Waste always has opportunities available.

Published by Nora Thomas

As of September 20th, 2025, the USDA has terminated future Household Food Security Reports. This annual report was essential for tracking food insecurity, understanding who is impacted, informing policy, and providing grantmakers with pivotal information.

This is a big deal. Let’s unpack the lasting impacts that the report’s cancellation will have, and the ways that we can continue to expand and protect food access in its absence. 

The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) has been conducting Household Food Insecurity Reports every year for the last 30 years. Beginning during the Clinton administration, the surveys were conducted with the goal of informing government food assistance eligibility and benefit allotments. 

Each December, the USDA gathered data on food insecurity through a supplemental survey conducted by the Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, in addition to their population survey. Then, the USDA Economic Research Service analyzed the data.

The survey asked a wide range of questions about income, spending, food security, food anxiety, nutrition/balanced meals, and hunger, with a special focus on childhood food security.

Example of Questions from the 2023 Household Security Survey

On September 20th, 2025, the U.S. The Department of Agriculture announced the termination of future Household Food Security Reports, publishing this statement on their website:

“These redundant, costly, politicized, and extraneous studies do nothing more than fear monger. For 30 years, this study—initially created by the Clinton administration as a means to support the increase of SNAP eligibility and benefit allotments—failed to present anything more than subjective, liberal fodder. Trends in the prevalence of food insecurity have remained virtually unchanged, regardless of an over 87% increase in SNAP spending between 2019 – 2023.”

Experts disagree with these claims. Megan Lott, deputy director for the Healthy Eating Research program at Duke University, argues the report is not redundant because it is the most comprehensive data on food security that we have.

The argument that the report is political is also debated. Republican and Democratic presidents have conducted the food security report since its start in 1995. The survey did not serve partisan political agendas, but acted as a source of reliable information for all policymakers and grantors.

Finally, while the USDA claims that SNAP program costs have increased by 87% since 2019, food insecurity also rose by 3.5%. At this time, families struggled more than usual due to the COVID-19 pandemic and lingering economic inflation. Again, this is a conservative percentage change, but it represents 12.2 million people. Additionally, participation in these programs increased during this time, indicating that spending increases were necessary.

USDA published chart illustrating SNAP spending and participation from 2000-2024.

Using the USDA’s public data supplement to this chart, evidence suggests that inflation-adjusted spending only increased by 60.8% between 2019 and 2023, not 87%. It is unclear how the USDA reached its calculation, but they could have used data without inflation adjustments or included private data. 

All in all, experts in the field are actively challenging the USDA’s statement that the report was “redundant, politicized, and subjective.” 

The report tracked food insecurity prevalence, as well as changes in food insecurity over time. This information helped government officials create effective policies to support food access and combat hunger.

The primary food assistance provided across the nation by the US government is the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC). Each year, based on the data regarding food insecurity rates, the government could effectively expand eligibility and benefits for these programs. The data also allowed the government to track whether programs like these improved food security.

The termination of the report follows directly after the One Big Beautiful Bill Act cut 187 billion from the SNAP budget, which will cut food assistance for an estimated 4 million individuals. This means we won’t be able to see nationally-scaled data representing the impacts of the largest budget cut to SNAP in the program’s 61 year history. 

In order to make effective policies and target localities for programs, lawmakers need data on hunger prevalence and who is most impacted. The data, in turn, illustrates to policymakers whether certain laws positively or negatively impacted food security. While SNAP and WIC are the biggest examples by individual participation, this also includes practices like providing free meals in public schools, emergency food assistance programs, and more. The Household Food Security Report was the most comprehensive data source for food security in the United States.

“Without that data, we are flying blind, and we don’t know the impact.”

-Cyrus Fitzsimmons, president of the Food Research and Action Center (FRAC)

Nonprofit organizations rely heavily on government grants to fund their efforts. For food-distributing nonprofits to receive grants, it is critical to provide concrete data and demonstrate the need for food assistance using the food security report. Nonprofits will likely struggle to secure the grants they need to support their food programs unless they have access to reputable, local surveys and data.

Nonprofits struggling to get necessary food program funding at the same time that the government is decreasing support for food assistance programs spells incoming disaster for our community.

As reported by the latest Household Food Security Report (2023), 1 in 7 households are experiencing food insecurity in the US. This is a total of 47.4 million people, including 13.8 million children. More than 5% of all households experienced very low food insecurity, indicating that their eating habits were disrupted.

USDA published graph illustrating household food security in 2023.

It is important to look at patterns in the data, as well. Food insecurity was also statistically significantly higher than the national average for households with children, households headed by a single parent, women living alone, households with Black and Hispanic householders, and households with income below 100% of the poverty level.

The racial gap in food insecurity is striking: 13.3% of households with a white household reference person experienced food insecurity, compared to 27.5% of households with a Black, non-Hispanic household reference person, and 26% of households with a Hispanic household reference person. Food insecurity is a systemic issue that disproportionally impacts communities of color. Without this data, these patterns are much more difficult to track, illustrate, and address through policy. 

Despite the USDA’s recent claim that “food security trends have remained virtually unchanged”, they also reported that “the 2023 prevalence of food insecurity (13.5 percent) was statistically significantly higher than the 2022 prevalence of 12.8 percent”. Looking at the data like this, it can be easy to minimize it. However, in the context of the US population size, that’s 2,800,000 more people who struggled to get meals on the table for their family. 

The data gathered and published in the annual household food security report are more than numbers. They represent real people, struggling to access food and get the nutrients they need. Without this report, hunger is not solved, but hidden. We must take action to protect food assistance efforts in the United States and fight food insecurity. There are a couple of ways we can do this. 

nonprofits

Nonprofits need your support, now more than ever. As federal funding is being cut, non-profits need supplemental funding to continue operating. Plus, as federal assistance is being cut, people are increasingly relying on nonprofits for support. Some nonprofits, like We Don’t Waste, work to improve food access in the community. Other nonprofits, like Hunger Free Colorado and the Colorado Health Institute, conduct local and statewide food surveys, which are especially important while the government is not reporting, because they help bridge the gap.

Policy

Advocate

Advocate for the Household Food Security Report! This data is essential. Contact your representatives and urge them to continue publishing data on food security. 

Published by Nora Thomas

The connections between food and health are undeniable and deeply complex. On a basic level, certain foods can affect different aspects of health. For example, a diagnosis of high blood pressure will likely lead a doctor to recommend decreased red meat consumption. And this makes sense because different foods give the body different nutrients to carry out essential functions. There are also profound connections between food insecurity and health. Although, typically, people think solely of hunger and malnutrition. What is fascinating is that food, and access to food, have a profound effect on the chances of facing chronic illness and how the body recovers.

DIET COMPOSITION AND HEALTH

First, let’s think about diet composition. What we eat is incredibly impactful on our health and immune system. Eating a varied and balanced diet can decrease the risk of obesity, cancer, heart disease, and other conditions. When food options are limited, diets often lack variation and nutrition. This causes food-insecure individuals to face a higher risk of developing chronic diseases.

Then, we can think about food as a tool for health and healing. Access to fresh, nutritious food impacts health and well-being in the short term, but it is also connected to long-term impacts such as major illnesses and health conditions. Diets are a critical tool because they can be modified to prevent chronic diseases and can also be changed once a condition develops to support symptom management. Utilizing food as a tool for your health is a privilege. It requires knowledge, time, and resources, and is extremely difficult when you don’t have as much choice in the foods you have access to.

FOOD INSECURITY IS A SIGNIFICANT FACTOR IN OVERALL HEALTH 

Food insecurity is not uncommon. USDA data from 2023 suggests that 13.5% of all households in the United States are experiencing food insecurity, and food insecurity disproportionally impacts people of color and lower socioeconomic status. New research shows that food insecurity is considered a significant socioeconomic factor in overall health and has been linked to higher risks of many chronic conditions. Additionally, food insecurity can lower overall health and mental health in many ways resulting in a decreased ability to respond to disease or illness. In this way, food insecurity creates a double-edged sword. 

In a 2017 study conducted by the United States Department of Agriculture, researchers analyzed chronic illness and food security on a marginal scale. They examined 10 chronic illnesses including hypertension, coronary heart disease, hepatitis, stroke, cancer, asthma, diabetes, arthritis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and kidney disease. The findings indicate that food-insecure individuals are considered at higher risk for all 10 of these conditions, while low-income is only attributed to 3.

 Analyzing this data on a marginal scale illustrates that households categorized with very low food security had a 40% higher chance of facing chronic illness than households with high food security. Finally, they found that cancer prevalence increases as food security decreases. From this research, the USDA concluded a strong correlation between food security status and chronic health conditions. This research is remarkable because it changes the way that we think about socioeconomic conditions, like food insecurity and poverty, and can better inform assistance efforts.

Let’s shift the lens from illness prevalence to examine illness recovery and outcomes. A 2025 JAMA Health Forum study analyzed mortality rates for individuals with cancer. This analysis includes data from 5603 cancer survivors, over 10% of whom reported experiencing food insecurity. After adjusting for differences in sex, age, and preexisting conditions, the data indicate a 28% increased risk of all-cause mortality for individuals reporting food insecurity. For food-insecure individuals who did not utilize government food assistance, this number rose to 42% increased risk of cancer mortality and all-cause mortality. 

The researchers considered the complex reasons that food itself could contribute to cancer mortality: If food-insecure households lack access to “healthy foods”, like fresh fruits and vegetables, this could contribute to obesity, another factor that increases cancer risk. Another pathway could come from eating foods that cause exposure to carcinogens (cancer-causing substances) which are less commonly found in expensive foods. Finally, food insecurity is linked to financial strain, which means that individuals lacking food access are less likely to be able to afford quality health care or cancer care.

MENTAL HEALTH AND HEALING 

It’s also important to acknowledge that food insecurity greatly impacts mental health, a factor that deeply influences how an individual responds to and recovers from a condition. Individuals facing food insecurity often experience high levels of food anxiety. Worrying about where your next meal is going to come from, or if you are eating enough basic nutrients, are very real fears. For adults, this constant worry can impact overall mental health, and for children, it can actually impact their mental development as well. 

It’s clear how struggling with food insecurity impacts mental health on a situational level, but there is also a direct scientific explanation. It is important to eat a certain amount of nutrients each day because these nutrients provide the body with building blocks and energy so that it can carry out necessary functions. For example, “Insufficient protein can affect mood, cognition, and energy levels due to its impact on neurotransmitter production and nutrient deficiencies like low iron, leading to mood swings, cognitive decline, fatigue, and irritability” (Nourishing the Mind). Furthermore, poor nutrition, as well as stress, can weaken our immune systems and cause an imbalance in the gut microbiota. 

Food security clearly impacts mental health, from stress levels to cognitive function to general well-being. Unfortunately, decreased mental health also affects how our body responds to illness and chronic conditions. 

Studies indicate that higher levels of emotional well-being are beneficial for recovery and even survival. Evidence also supports a link between mental health, specifically depression and chronic illness. People with depression face challenges completing tasks that support their physical health. Depression can also cause bodily changes, like increased inflammation, reduced blood circulation, and increased heart rate, that can increase the risk of developing chronic illness. 

Acknowledging this relationship is important because it illustrates how the connections between food access, mental health, and health are much more complex than initially perceived.

Implications

One key finding of these studies is that food-insecure individuals who did not participate in food assistance were at a 50% greater risk of all-cause mortality than those who did. Furthermore, nearly half of all US adults experiencing food insecurity report not engaging in assistance programs. Assistance programs are so important to health, mental health, and recovery. In fact, one study found that for patients with cancer and food insecurity, access to food vouchers and food pantries in clinics was associated with increased treatment completion, food security, mental health, and quality of life. Acknowledging what barriers are present, whether it is a lack of knowledge about programs, misinformation, inaccessibility, or stigma, is critical to taking steps to improve the use of food assistance programs and ultimately improve food security and health in our communities. 

What Now? 

The goal of sharing these studies is to illuminate why increasing access to nutritious food is so important. These studies show the direct effect that food assistance has on health, reinforcing the positive impacts of rescuing and redistributing food. While these data highlight important trends, experiencing food insecurity does not predetermine someone’s health conditions and outcomes. Food insecurity is a temporary issue that can impact anyone, and gaining access to food can completely turn things around.

The good news is that research is already being done to find out the best way to increase food access! For example, for low-income neighborhoods that are not within walking distance of a store, the most impactful recovery effort is suspected to be walkable food pantries. Additionally, researchers emphasize using a multi-level approach when it comes to food assistance, considering the changes they could make on individual, interpersonal, organizational, community, and policy levels, to make the strongest impact possible.

YOU can always make an impact!

1. Volunteer with We Don’t Waste! Our mobile food markets are a great way to get involved. You can help hand out nutritious food to your community and make a direct impact. If you’re not local, there are food rescue organizations all over the U.S. that need volunteers that you should check out.
2. Donate to We Don’t Waste. Your contributions help us to continue our efforts to increase food access and education in Denver. 
3. Stop the stigma! Treat everyone with the respect and kindness they deserve. Reducing the stigma helps people feel empowered to get the help they need.

Published by Nora Thomas

Understanding the decomposition process and how landfill food waste contributes to climate change 

You have probably heard that food decomposes slowly in a landfill, but do you know why? Let’s look into this muddy process to understand what happens to our food waste, how it returns to the soil, and why it is so important to divert food from the landfill. 

“Breaking Down” Decomposition:

Decomposition describes the gradual process by which raw organic materials break down into simpler substances. This process includes:

1. Fragmentation – Earthworms and other soil creatures break up material into smaller pieces. This is important because bacteria, which are essential to the decomposition process, can penetrate smaller surface areas more easily.
2. Leaching – Rainwater dissolves chemicals and nutrients from the organic matter into the soil. 
3. Mixing – Earthworms and soil organisms mix soil particles and organic materials.

Let’s break this down! Several conditions must be met for this process to occur, and many factors impact the rate of decomposition:

Oxygen

There are two main types of decomposition – anaerobic and aerobic. Aerobic decomposition occurs when oxygen is available. This includes most examples in nature, like a leaf decomposing on the surface of the forest floor. Contrastingly, anaerobic decomposition occurs in the absence of oxygen, typically underground or in compressed environments. This means that decomposers that require oxygen cannot support the process. Although anaerobic decomposition does occur in nature, aerobic decomposition is more common and much faster. 

Nutrients

Soil organisms break down complex nutrients and turn them into simpler substances, such as water, carbon dioxide, and bioavailable nitrogen, phosphorus, and calcium. When the soil organisms die and decompose, these nutrients become available to other organisms. Without decomposers, plants would struggle to find available nitrogen, which they cannot grow and function without.

Temperature

Temperature is critical to the decomposition process, especially when it comes to decomposers. Some microorganisms prefer medium temperatures, around 50-113°F, and are present at the beginning of the process. These are called mesophiles. Thermophiles, on the other hand, prefer warmer temperatures around 113-158°F, and appear 5-10 days into the decomposition process. Mesophilic and thermophilic organisms are typically bacteria, archaea, or eukarya.

In general, cold temperatures slow decomposition, and warm temperatures speed up the process. High temperatures are also important because they inhibit weeds, diseases, and seeds, which pose threats to the process.

Moisture

Proper moisture is necessary to support microbial organisms that play a key role in decomposing the organic matter. On the other hand, if there is too much water, oxygen can be limited, which constricts the decomposition process.

Decomposers

While we can often see earthworms, the nearly invisible fungi, protozoa, and bacteria are also critical soil organisms that break down organic matter. They are found more in aerobic than anaerobic decomposition. Mesophilic and thermophilic bacteria start the process. Then, as the temperature lowers towards the end of the process, actinomycetes and fungi work on the outer surface.

What Happens When Our Food Goes to the Landfill?

Now that we’ve looked into how organic materials decompose in nature, we can understand how the decomposition process is different in a landfill environment. 

The food decomposition process is delayed in a landfill environment because the ideal conditions required for decomposition are not met. Primarily, landfills use bulldozers and compactors to fit as much waste as possible. This compaction limits oxygen and organism diversity, making aerobic decomposition impossible. 

Anaerobic decomposition is possible through organisms such as bacteria and archaea; however, it results in harmful greenhouse gas emissions. As these organisms break down organic matter in the absence of oxygen, they release methane gas. Methane-producing microbes are not active when oxygen is present, which is why aerobic digestion is not as environmentally harmful. 

According to the EPA, methane makes up 11% of global carbon emissions and is over 28 times as potent as carbon dioxide, which means it has a much greater capacity to trap heat in the atmosphere. Food waste represents 24% of all municipal waste and accounts for 58% of all methane generated in landfills. This large release of potent greenhouse gas demonstrates that food decay in the landfill is a major contributor to climate change.  Finally, we generally underestimate how long it takes for our food waste to decay, and this process is further delayed in a landfill environment. For example, a head of lettuce may take 2-3 weeks to decompose in a compost bin, but take up to 25 years to fully decompose in a landfill. The difference is shocking!

Why Does This Matter?

According to the USDA, 30-40% of all food in the United States ends up in the landfill. Furthermore, in 2023, only 6.08% of all food and yard waste generated in the United States was composted. Out of all of the municipal solid waste generated in the US, 21.59% represents food, which is equivalent to 63.1 million tons. This means that 63.1 million tons of food are sitting in the landfill, taking up space, and producing greenhouse gases, when they could instead be undergoing the natural decomposition cycle and returning nutrients to the Earth. Understanding how much waste is produced is especially startling considering how many individuals are experiencing hunger and food insecurity.

These drastic statistics also serve as a reminder that food insecurity does not stem from a lack of food but rather unequal distribution and overwhelming waste. 

What Can We Do?

The answer is clear – we must divert as much food from the landfill as possible to decrease food waste and environmental impact, and increase food accessibility. 

The solution starts with preventing food waste by only buying and serving what you need. Before you throw food away, think about what you can do instead of sending it to the landfill! If the food is not spoiled, you can upcycle it or donate it. If that option is no longer viable, you can turn wasted food into animal feed. Although hopefully avoidable, the next step is composting. Following these steps should limit nearly all food waste from landfills.

We recommend following a food waste scale or food recovery hierarchy, like this one from the EPA: 

Understanding why food waste in the landfill is so harmful can better inform our actions. The amount of food sent to our landfills is shocking, especially considering the prevalence of food insecurity and the environmental harm caused by food in the landfill. Now that you understand the impact of your waste, ask yourself what you can do to reduce it!

Make an Impact:

1. Get Involved: Join our volunteer team here at We Don’t Waste to help redistribute food! 
2. Reduce waste in your home by making conscious shopping and food storage choices. 
3. Start Composting: Set up compost in your backyard or schedule a pickup service!
4. Stay Informed: Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok to learn more about food recovery and stay up-to-date on our latest events! 

Food insecurity in the U.S. is already a widespread and growing challenge, affecting over 47 million people in 2023 alone, including 13 million children. For individuals and families living with food allergies or intolerances, navigating food insecurity can be even more complex and often more dangerous.

What is Food Insecurity?

The USDA defines food insecurity as the limited or uncertain access to enough food for an active, healthy life. It doesn’t always mean hunger. It can mean relying on food pantries or inconsistent food sources, or having to make difficult choices between food and other necessities like rent or medication.

Now imagine having to make those choices while also avoiding foods that could cause a serious allergic reaction. For people with food allergies or intolerances, food insecurity isn’t just about having enough food. It’s about having the right kind of food. The kind that won’t send someone to the hospital or make a chronic health condition worse. For millions of Americans, that kind of food just isn’t available, and it can be an isolating experience.

The Overlap of Food Allergies and Food Insecurity

Food allergies affect an estimated 33 million Americans, including 5.6 million children. The most common allergens include:

• Milk
• Eggs
• Peanuts
• Tree nuts
• Wheat
• Soy
• Fish
• Shellfish
  

The most common allergens are inexpensive, shelf-stable, and protein-rich. This makes them staples in many emergency food programs, food pantries, and school cafeterias. For people with allergies or food intolerances, these staples can be dangerous or even deadly. 

According to Food Equality Initiative, 1 in 3 food-insecure families report food allergies in their household. Many report skipping food distributions entirely because the risks are too high, or because they’ve been disappointed too many times before.

For food-insecure families dealing with allergies, their options are limited:

• Pantries and food banks often don’t have allergen-free alternatives.
• Allergen-free foods like oat milk, gluten-free pasta, or nut-free snacks are often more expensive and rarely donated.
• Families are left choosing between going hungry or risking a reaction.

Additionally, the burden of food allergies isn’t evenly distributed. Studies by the National Institute of Health have shown that Black, Asian, and Hispanic children are more likely to have food allergies but less likely to be formally diagnosed. Combine this with systemic issues like underinvestment in marginalized communities in America and higher rates of food insecurity, and the problem becomes a deep equity issue.

This is a fixable problem, but it requires awareness, advocacy, and action.

• Pantries and food banks can improve their allergen labeling and diversify their offerings.
• Food recovery and food rescue organizations can provide diverse food access options in local communities.
• Policy advocacy is needed to ensure that programs like SNAP and WIC offer appropriate choices for people with allergies.
• Organizations and food service programs need increased awareness of the interconnectedness of food insecurity and food allergies.
  

How We Don’t Waste Supports Safe, Dignified Food Access

At We Don’t Waste, we know that equitable food access means more than just calories; it means providing culturally relevant, nutritious, and safe food for everyone.

Through our food recovery and distribution program, we strive to offer choice and accommodate diverse food offerings when possible. Food recovery is, by its nature, more diverse in food recovered and distributed than many food purchase programs because of the increased sources of food coming into the system. Food recovery organizations take surplus food from grocers, event caterers, local food businesses, and more. 

Want to Help?

• Donate allergy-safe, shelf-stable food like gluten-free pasta, nut-free granola bars, or dairy-free milk alternatives next time you participate in a food drive. 
• Support nonprofits advocating for food justice with an equity lens.
• Raise awareness during Food Allergy Awareness Week and beyond.
  

When it comes to food insecurity, we can’t settle for one-size-fits-all solutions. Every plate should be safe. Every meal should nourish. Every person deserves access.

Happy Pride from our We Don’t Waste family to yours! 

This month, we’re celebrating the LGBTQ+ activists who are not only fighting for equality, but for food justice, too. Across the country, queer leaders are growing gardens, feeding communities, and challenging the systems that leave too many without access to nutritious, culturally relevant food.

Queer Food Activism Is Food Justice

Food justice is queer justice. For decades, LGBTQ+ folks, especially within the trans and BIPOC communities, have experienced disproportionate rates of poverty and food insecurity. They’ve also been at the frontlines of change, building mutual aid networks, reclaiming land, and creating spaces where nourishment and dignity go hand-in-hand.

LGBTQ+ Food Activists to Know

Here are just a few LGBTQ+ food activists and organizations we’re proud to spotlight:

Vanessa Parish (she/her) – Executive Director and Co-Founder of the Queer Food Foundation
Vanessa Parish co-founded the Queer Food Foundation in 2020 as a mutual aid fund to support food service workers who were being laid off at the start of the pandemic. Today, the group also conducts research and hosts events and educational panels.

John Birdsall (he/him) – Award-winning food and culture writer
John Birdsall is a James Beard Award–winning queer food writer and former chef known for exploring the intersections of food, identity, and culture. Birdsall wrote The Man Who Ate Too Much, a biography of James Beard, and What Is Queer Food?, a deep dive into how queer communities have shaped food culture. Check out his piece, America, Your Food Is So Gay.

Alex Ketchum (she/her) – Co-founder, Queer Food Conference Alex Ketchum is a professor at McGill University’s Institute for Gender, Sexuality and Feminist Studies and a co-founder of the Queer Food Conference. Ketchum is also the author of “Ingredients for Revolution: A History of American Feminist Restaurants, Cafes, and Coffeehouses,” which is the first history of more than 230 feminist and lesbian-feminist restaurants and coffeehouses in the U.S. from 1972 to the present.

Liz Alpern (she/her) – Founder, Queer Soup Night Liz Alpern is a chef, cookbook author, and founder of Queer Soup Night, a community-driven event launched in Brooklyn in 2017. What began with Alpern making soup has grown into a national movement with 13 chapters, where LGBTQ+ chefs serve soup to raise funds for local nonprofits. For Alpern, queer food is all about shared identity and community connection through food.

Why LGBTQ+ Food Justice Matters

At We Don’t Waste, we believe that nourishing communities has impacts farther-reaching than the food you can see on a plate. It means standing with those fighting for equity, representation, and the dignity of having access to food, all year round. LGBTQ+ food activists remind us that a just food system must be inclusive, intersectional, and rooted in love.

This Pride Month, let’s honor their legacy not only with words but with action. Volunteer. Donate. Share their stories. Advocate for policies that fight hunger and support queer communities. Let’s celebrate our diversity while remembering the age-old adage that nothing brings people together better than a shared meal. 

HAPPY PRIDE!

Black food sovereignty is at the heart of modern Juneteenth celebrations, reflecting a continued fight for liberation through food, land, and culture. Juneteenth marks a delayed freedom, two and a half years after the Emancipation Proclamation, the last enslaved Black Americans in Galveston, Texas, finally learned they were free. Today, that legacy lives on not just in remembrance, but in action, as communities reclaim power, dignity, and access in all forms, including the right to food.

Across the country, Black-led food justice organizations are reshaping our food systems by reclaiming agricultural traditions, honoring culturally rooted foodways, and building mutual aid networks that prioritize community care over profit. These efforts are more than acts of service, they are acts of resistance and empowerment.

At We Don’t Waste, we believe food sovereignty is essential to equity. By rescuing surplus food and ensuring it reaches nonprofits serving historically marginalized communities, we stand in solidarity with these justice-driven movements, supporting a future where access to nourishing and culturally relevant food is not a privilege but a right. We also acknowledge the systemic barriers many people of color have faced within institutional structures, including food access. 

Reclaiming Land and Power Through Black Food Sovereignty

For generations, Black Americans have been systematically denied land ownership and access to the agricultural economy they once built. Today, organizations like Soul Fire Farm in New York and Farming While Black are leading the charge to reverse that narrative, training Black and Brown farmers, promoting agroecology, and advancing Black food sovereignty by returning land stewardship to those long pushed out of it.

In Colorado, groups like Black Food Sovereignty Coalition Denver are working to cultivate community gardens, reclaim neighborhood plots, and expand education around culturally rooted agriculture. These movements aren’t just about growing food, they’re about growing freedom.

Honoring Cultural Foodways in the Fight for Black Food Sovereignty

From okra and collards to gumbo and grits, food has always been central to Black identity, resilience, and storytelling. Organizations like The Black Feminist Project are preserving and celebrating these foodways while also addressing food apartheid and generational trauma. A food apartheid describes the institutional racism and use of political power to perpetuate food access and funding inequality. 

By ensuring access to culturally relevant foods, those that resonate with heritage, faith, and community, food justice initiatives reinforce the idea that liberation also looks like a dinner table where everyone sees themselves reflected in the meal.

On Juneteenth, many celebrations will feature red foods originating from the cultures of the enslaved Yoruba and Kongo people, who were brought to Texas in the 19th century. The color red can represent power, sacrifice, and transformation in both of those cultures.

In the present day, barbecue and adjacent sides are often the go-to food for Juneteenth celebrations, but this tradition is more than just a festive meal. Barbecue is deeply rooted in Southern history and is recognized as a communal act of cooking and gathering.

As Texas Monthly’s barbecue editor Daniel Vaughn notes, 19th-century newspaper reports often described entire communities coming together at local barbecue pits or open grounds to prepare and share food in honor of Juneteenth. The slow-cooked meats and shared preparation reflect not just flavor, but the collective spirit and cultural pride that define the holiday.

BBQ sides also have a metaphoric meaning; black-eyed peas and pork represent wealth, collard greens (or any dish using leafy vegetables) are said to bring good fortune, and corn symbolizes gold. 

Mutual Aid as Liberation

During the pandemic and beyond, mutual aid networks filled the gaps left by traditional systems. Black-led coalitions organized free fridges, meal deliveries, and redistribution efforts that directly supported families in need, no red tape and no strings attached. This community-first approach echoes the spirit of Juneteenth: people taking care of people in the absence of systemic justice.

These systems thrive on shared responsibility, collective power, and the belief that everyone deserves to eat, not just survive, but thrive.

At We Don’t Waste,  we rescue fresh, high-quality food that would otherwise be discarded and redirect it to a network of over 100 nonprofit partners. Through our Mobile Food Markets, we deliver food directly to neighborhoods that have been historically underserved, offering produce, pantry staples, and proteins without barriers. We strive to distribute food that aligns with community preferences and dietary needs, honoring the cultural relevance of what we serve.

Food justice is not just about saving food; it’s about who has access to it, what kind of food is available, and who holds the power in the process. As we reflect on Juneteenth, we commit to building a food system rooted in Black food sovereignty, equity, dignity, and justice.

Read our other Juneteenth blogs here, and dive into a more historical retelling of January 1, 1863, here. 

This Juneteenth, consider donating to or volunteering with organizations like We Don’t Waste that are working to ensure equitable food access in historically underserved communities. You can also support Black-owned farms, restaurants, and food businesses that are preserving foodways, reclaiming land, and feeding their communities with care.

Nonprofits are deeply ingrained in the fabric of American life, and we often overlook the history of nonprofits and how their origin story began. Whether it’s a community health clinic, an after-school arts program, or a food rescue organization, these institutions do more than just provide services, they reflect a unique sense of humanity. Understanding why nonprofits exist requires a look at how the nonprofit model has evolved over time. From religious organizations to the rise of government aid and welfare systems, tracing the history of nonprofits and philanthropy reveals just how deeply this spirit of giving is embedded in human culture, and how it continues to grow and adapt today.

The origins of Philanthropy: 

Giving back is not a new phenomenon. Philanthropy originates from Ancient Greece, literally translating to the “love of humanity”. In ancient civilizations, the Greeks and Romans would come together to support the less fortunate, fund public works, and promote education. As societies progressed through the Middle Ages and into the Renaissance, the role of charitable organizations began to formalize. Religious institutions played a pivotal role in this evolution, as churches and monasteries provided care for the sick, education for the young, and support for the poor. Now, 9.9% of all private sector jobs are held by nonprofit organizations, with 1 in 10 working adults working in the sector.

In tracing the history of nonprofits in the United States, the first widely recognized modern example is the Peabody Education Fund. Its mission was to improve education in the post-Civil War South, particularly for poor white communities and formerly enslaved individuals. While the Emancipation Proclamation had legally ended slavery, deep racial and economic inequalities remained, especially in access to education.

Industry, Inequality, and the Rise of Organized Giving:

Understanding the history of nonprofits helps us see how social challenges have long driven innovation in the nonprofit sector. In the late 19th century, many wealthy men began forming voluntary associations to promote causes like public education and civic development. These efforts helped lay the groundwork for the nonprofit model we know today. Some of the earliest American universities, such as Harvard and Cornell, were established through such philanthropic endeavors. At the time, higher education was tuition-free, exclusively for white men, and operated independently of government involvement. 

As America recovered from the Civil War, it began to reshape itself through the rise of the Industrial Revolution. Cities swelled with people seeking opportunity in the booming factory economy, but this rapid growth came at a cost. The wealth gap between industrial capitalists and the working class widened dramatically. Factory conditions were often dangerous and inhumane; long hours, low wages, and child labor were common.

The influx of people into urban centers also brought severe social challenges: overcrowded housing, widespread poverty, and unsafe work environments. In response, a new wave of nonprofit organizations began to emerge, driven by a mission to address these urgent needs. These early efforts laid the foundation for modern social services, offering aid and advocacy for the most vulnerable in a rapidly changing America.

Andrew Carnegie rose to immense wealth through the steel industry during the Industrial Revolution. Like many industrialists of the time, Carnegie profited from grueling labor practices; his mills were notorious for demanding twelve-hour shifts, seven days a week, under hazardous conditions. Yet, despite his labor record, Carnegie is often recognized as one of the first modern philanthropists.

Believing that wealth should be used to uplift society, Carnegie devoted much of his fortune to expanding access to knowledge and opportunity. His primary focus was education, particularly through the establishment of free public libraries. At a time when public libraries were rare, Carnegie championed the idea that everyone, regardless of class, should have access to books and learning. Starting in 1881, he and the Carnegie Corporation invested more than $56 million to fund the construction of 2,509 libraries across the English-speaking world, fundamentally transforming access to education for generations to come.

Carnegie was also one of the first capitalists to publish and promote the idea that the rich have an obligation to promote public good. In his book, The Gospel of Wealth, Carnegie emphasizes that wealth should be used to improve the lives of others, and that “The man who dies thus rich, dies disgraced.” 

While philanthropic efforts during this era were undoubtedly impactful, they often came with problematic caveats. Many wealthy donors believed in supporting lower-income and vulnerable populations, but not all agreed on who was worthy of that support. As Carnegie famously wrote in The Gospel of Wealth, “It were better for mankind that the millions of the rich were thrown into the sea than so spent as to encourage the slothful, the drunken, the unworthy.”

This mindset continues to raise concerns among today’s nonprofit leaders and charitable organizations. It gives wealthy donors disproportionate control over where resources go, allowing them to define who is “deserving” of help based on their own values rather than the actual needs of communities. As a result, it can reinforce harmful stereotypes about poverty and take away the power of communities to advocate for themselves or influence the kind of support they receive.

Still, Carnegie played a key role in shaping the culture of giving that underpins modern philanthropy. Despite their flaws, the foundations built by industrial titans had a lasting impact on fields like education, science, public health, and the arts. Over time, their collaborative efforts helped push philanthropy toward more structured and inclusive models. These developments paved the way for future reforms, such as the Revenue Act of 1909, which officially recognized tax-exempt status for charitable, religious, and educational organizations and introduced the “no private inurement” rule to prevent personal profit from nonprofit funds. 

From Government Support to Social Movements:

While early philanthropy was largely driven by wealthy individuals and private foundations, the Great Depression marked a major turning point in the history of nonprofits, shifting the responsibility of social welfare more directly onto the federal government. In response, President Franklin D. Roosevelt launched the New Deal, a sweeping set of programs aimed at providing relief to working-class and low-income Americans. Throughout his first presidency, FDR passed a multitude of bills designed to lift the country out of crisis. From the Civilian Conservation Corps, an initiative employing young men in rural and park development, to the National Labor Relations Act and the creation of Social Security, these policies significantly reshaped the landscape of nonprofit and philanthropic work in America.

As the New Deal redefined the government’s role in social welfare, the global crises that followed further expanded the scope and significance of nonprofit organizations. Both world wars had profound impacts on the sector, shifting its focus and scale. During these periods, nonprofit efforts centered around medical care, food distribution, and psychological support. In particular, World War II highlighted the global importance of nonprofit work, as millions were displaced and entire economies destabilized. These challenges transformed public perception, positioning nonprofits not just as charitable actors, but as critical partners in addressing complex political and humanitarian crises. 

Nonprofits Today: Collective Action for a Better Future:

The shifting in class consciousness seen in the 1950s and the latter half of the 20th century brought about a new type of nonprofit work, one more dedicated to fighting for the social justice of marginalized communities. As the civil rights movement began to take hold across America, many nonprofit organizations began to build advocacy into their work. Organizations such as the NAACP and Amnesty International emerged as powerful voices advocating for marginalized communities and human rights. The growing awareness of racial discrimination, gender inequality, and environmental degradation sparked a cultural movement not just within the nonprofit sector but throughout America. Nonprofits began to engage in lobbying efforts, public education campaigns, and grassroots mobilization to raise awareness and influence policy decisions. 

As we reflect on the history of nonprofits and their role in shaping social change, We Don’t Waste remains committed to carrying that legacy forward. Presently, nonprofits across America fight, advocate, and work to create a more equitable, fair, and inclusive world. Innovation and digital technologies have made connection and communication easier than ever before, strengthening the power of community support and activism. As more and more people need food access across America, We Don’t Waste recognizes that we cannot do it alone. Creating strong partnerships with other local nonprofits and businesses, as well as advocating for better food access policy across the state, will help ensure we are creating as much change as possible. 

Meaningful change has always been driven by the power of people. We’re honored to stand alongside our communities, listening, learning, and working together to build a better future for all. But we know we can’t do it alone. Help us make a difference in our Denver communities and put a dent in the 40% of food waste. 

Make an impact: Volunteer with us or donate today, our communities need us more than ever.

Kyle Endres, Executive Director of We Don’t Waste, shares his insights on leadership, community building, and the importance of open-mindedness in running a nonprofit organization.

We sat down with Kyle Endres, the Executive Director of We Don’t Waste, to learn more about his leadership and experience in taking over the nonprofit organization over the past year. From economic hurdles to political uncertainty, working in the nonprofit sector often means navigating challenges beyond the organization’s control. Learning to manage these ups and downs is an essential skill for any leader in the field. Hear from Kyle on his experience, advice, and leadership:

Tell us a little bit about what led you to We Don’t Waste:

Kyle: I started at We Don’t Waste in 2017 in search of furthering my own experience in nonprofit development. I attended CSU and got my undergraduate degree in journalism. Before coming to We Don’t Waste, I spent some time working in Peru teaching English, then came back to Denver and went into helping Colorado Meal Services and Metro Caring with community outreach and development/fundraising. 

How did the opportunity to step into the Executive Director Role come about? 

Kyle: Well, I had been working at We Don’t Waste for around seven years doing development, Arlan was looking to retire sometime during the Summer and he wanted to get us into the new building and kind of get all that squared away. At the beginning of last year, Arlan set his date, which was June 30, 2024. At that point, the board, who had known this was coming, started their search, and I was fortunate to be the one they picked. 

Were you nervous to step into a leadership position? Did you feel ready? 

Kyle: I think I was ready. I had the benefit of being here and seeing the growth. Just for context, when I started back in 2017 I was employee number six, and now we’re at 27. I was just with the organization through kind of a formative time, and so from that perspective, I felt like I was ready. I knew the organization, I knew the team, I knew the donors.

I think the transition was very successful. Anytime you have a founder who was the face of the organization, it’s a big shift, right? It’s not just kind of your normal executive transition, because you have this founder who’s been here for so long and was so kind of synonymous with We Don’t Waste. But again, I feel like I had a leg up on all that. I’ve been part of so many decisions that we made, and from that perspective, it felt as kind of natural and smooth as it could be. But, you know, I’m learning stuff every day, there’s a whole side of the organization that I wasn’t intimately involved in because I was so focused on the development and fundraising side.

How do you manage imposter syndrome as someone who’s been in this role for almost a year, and like, stepping into it, was it harder to, kind of like quiet that part of your brain down?

Kyle: I think it’s always there a little bit, but I really lean on my team. I know I don’t know everything.  I think, even with the big decisions, the hard decisions, having the right process and talking it through and not making a knee jerk reaction, is key. You’re going to come across decisions that nobody’s dealt with before. But again, I think if you can talk it through and kind of come to a consensus on what is the best decision or the best way forward and lean on other people’s experience and expertise, you can kind of beat back that imposter syndrome a little.

How would you describe your leadership style, and how do you think it has evolved since stepping into executive director?

Kyle: I like to think I’m collaborative. Knowing that I don’t have to have all the answers, which kind of comes back to what we were talking about before. I don’t need to know the perfect answer to every question.  Right now, we’re trying to decide if we’re gonna do a new roof for solar panels. I’m not an expert on this stuff, I don’t have solar at home. I don’t know anything about this, but I’m gonna take advantage of the resources that I have to find out the right answer. You can’t know everything about everything. So again, just bringing in the right people to help you, and sometimes that’s within the organization, sometimes that’s from outside the organization, even if I have a vision for how I think something should go, hearing out other people and trying to get either their buy-in or their pushback. I think it’s all about the process of learning and hearing new ideas before you make that final decision. 

What lessons did you learn from Arlan’s leadership? What are you carrying forward, or what are you doing differently?

Kyle: I think Arlan is great at articulating his vision, and I want to do that more. We have different personalities, I can be more reserved and perhaps quiet. In many cases, that’s good, but in some cases, you need to just be out there and tell people the vision. I think I have taken a lot from him, and I’ve learned a lot from him over the years.

 However, we’re very different generations, and I am trying to bring some of my experience and generational differences to work experiences. Like how do older and younger generations work together? How do they operate? How do you navigate hybrid work or sick policy? I think, trying to bring a different perspective to some of that stuff, and again, leaning on the team and trying to get feedback before kind of making a decision.

What piece of advice would you give someone stepping into a leadership role for the first time?

Kyle: Talk to as many people as you can and learn as much as you can from them. Because again, even for me, having been here and doing development for a long time, I was still putting on a new hat. I wanted to hear everyone’s thoughts on ideas, policies, and new projects, and the same thing for the people that I hadn’t worked as closely with in the past in terms of things like operations or programs. I think just talking to as many people as you can, getting as much feedback as you can, being open to that feedback, and trying to give people opportunities. 

I think the open door policy is something that’s used a lot, I hope that people, like, really, can come in and talk to you about anything. It could be something personal, it could be something related to their work. 

How do you keep your team motivated?

Kyle: We have this kind of built-in bonus when it comes to motivation, because our team is genuinely passionate about what we do and the mission we’re working toward. But you can’t just rely on that and assume it’s enough. So, we’ve been intentional about improving things like our benefits package and pay structures.

That said, a lot of it really comes back to collaboration and fostering a strong sense of community. Studies show that people don’t usually leave just because of pay. That can be part of it, sure, but often it’s about culture or the quality of supervision.

So we focus on creating a collaborative environment where people feel heard, where they have real autonomy over their roles. They’re not being micromanaged, and I think that makes a huge difference. The thing about culture is, it’s not just one thing, it’s all these pieces working together. That’s what shapes the experience and helps with retention.

And above all, we try to stay open to feedback. We might not be able to act on everything, but we’re always willing to have the conversation.

What impact do you hope to leave, not on just the organization, but the people within it?

Kyle: I just hope that people feel for however long they work here, that they have made a difference, and that the organization positioned them to do that. So it’s not really about my impact, it’s about our impact, while I’m involved and after. You hope that some of the stuff you implement gets continued, you know, for the foreseeable future, or improved upon. 

Looking back, what advice would you give to your 25-year-old self?

Kyle:  I took a job, won’t say which one, that paid less because it offered something I really wanted to learn. If you can afford to, be open to opportunities like that. Look for roles that might not offer big short-term rewards but can lead to long-term growth.

When I transitioned into a development role, it completely changed the trajectory of my career. So, my advice would be: don’t be afraid to step outside your comfort zone if it’s something you’re curious about or feel called to do.

For me, I wanted to move forward in the nonprofit world and eventually take on leadership roles. I knew gaining development experience would be key to that. I was in a position where I could sacrifice a little in the short term, and it absolutely paid off in the long run.

So to my 25-year-old self, I’d just say: don’t hesitate. Take the risks that might set you up for something greater down the line.

UPDATE 4/29/25: The House passed legislation sponsored by Representative Lorena García that would refer two ballot measures to Colorado voters regarding the continuation of the Healthy School Meals for All program. HB25-1274 passed by a vote of 40-22.

House Bill 1274, recently passed by the Colorado House this April, was introduced by the General Assembly to strengthen and expand funding for the state’s Healthy School Meals for All program, ensuring more students have access to nutritious, no-cost meals. This initiative, established following the voter-approved Proposition FF in 2022, provides free, nutritious meals to all public school students. The bill proposes two ballot measures for the November 2025 election to address funding challenges and enhance program sustainability.​

Broken up into three ballot measures, HB-1274 sets out to reform how excess revenue is handled for high-income earners and tax deductions:

Ballot Measure 1: Retention of Excess Revenue

The first measure seeks voter approval to allow the state to retain $26.3 million in revenue that exceeds the estimates provided in the Proposition FF ballot information booklet. Under the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR), such excess revenue would typically be refunded. If approved, the state would maintain current income tax deduction limits for high-income earners, ensuring continued funding for the meal program. If rejected, the state would refund the $26.3 million to individuals with federal taxable incomes of $300,000 or more who claimed significant deductions, and the deduction limits would be adjusted accordingly.​

Ballot Measure 2: Additional Funding Through Tax Deduction Adjustments

The second measure proposes increasing state revenue by $95 million annually by further limiting income tax deductions for individuals earning $300,000 or more. The standard and itemized deduction limits would be reduced to $1,000 for single filers and $2,000 for joint filers. The additional revenue would be allocated to the Healthy School Meals for All program, supporting its expansion and sustainability. If voters reject this measure, the proposed deduction limits would not be implemented.​

Beyond funding adjustments, HB25-1274 includes provisions to enhance the meal program’s effectiveness and community involvement:​

Local Food Purchasing Grants: Modifications to grant distribution aim to support small and medium-sized farms and ranches, promoting the use of Colorado-grown, raised, or processed products in school meals.​

Advisory Committees: The bill encourages the formation of advisory committees comprising students and parents to provide input on meal selections, ensuring cultural relevance and appeal.​

Wage Increases for Food Service Workers: Funds may be allocated to increase wages or provide stipends for school food service employees directly involved in meal preparation and service.​

Technical Assistance and Education Grants: Additional grants would support training and education related to local food procurement and meal preparation.​

The Healthy School Meals for All program has seen significant participation, with all 190 eligible school food authorities opting in and a more than 30% increase in meal participation compared to the previous school year. The proposed measures in HB25-1274 aim to build on this success by ensuring stable funding and enhancing program components.​

With this Bill moving through the House, Colorado is one step closer to protecting the right to food access for all of our school-aged children. The House sponsor, Rep. Lorena Garcia, helped pass this legislation and advocated for food access and the protection of Colorado farmers.