Common Market, Houston Food Bank, Small Places, and Urban Harvest outreach strategies aim to reach food insecure residents and low-income families impacted by COVID-19 through:

• Fostering relationships with community organizations, health clinics and public schools
• Coordinating and promoting opportunities to residents and partnering organizations
• Hosting events such as farmers markets, field trips to local farms, and school markets
• Setting up distribution sites at community centers

Target Goals Include:

• Increase the number of households served through food access programs
• Establish new food distribution sites, pop-up markets, and farmers markets
• Provide food and nutrition education opportunities

Common Market , Urban Harvest , Small Places , Houston Food Bank

44% of the Harris County population is either food insecure or susceptible to food insecurity. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, 0.8 million Harris County residents were estimated to be food insecure, many of which are kids. An additional 1.3 million residents are at risk of food insecurity. Several food deserts exist within Harris County, where a substantial number of residents have low levels of access to retail outlets selling healthy and affordable foods.

Key drivers of food insecurity include having high unemployment, low income, limited transportation, disability, and being an underrepresented minority. The most food insecure areas in Harris County overlap with the most socially vulnerable areas. Additionally, the pandemic exacerbated food security challenges for many people, with local food banks experiencing significant increases in demand for food.