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Policy >> Emergency Food Assistance Program (EFAP)
Emergency Food Assistance Program (EFAP)EFAP is a program of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), which provides non-perishable and fresh commodities to each state in the nation for the purpose of alleviating hunger. EFAP is a safety net for the country's most vulnerable residents, those who rely of food closets, soup kitchens or other emergency food sources to help feed themselves and/or their families. It started as the Temporary Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) in the 1980's when the nation had a surplus of dairy products and cheese. Since then the surplus dairy products and cheese have given way to a wide range of commodities, from non-perishable canned fruits and vegetables to frozen meat and fresh products. It is no longer considered a temporary program, as the problem it sought to alleviate, hunger, is still with us.In California EFAP is administered by the California Department of Social
Services in conjunction with a statewide non-profit organization, Foodlink.
EFAP commodities are distributed up and down California through a network
of hundreds of emergency food providers, such as food banks, food closets
and soup kitchens to low income Californians within 150% of the federal
poverty guidelines. On a monthly basis about 1.5 million Californians
receive these commodities. For more information on the EFAP program in
California, contact California's
Emergency Food Assistance Program or California
Emergency Foodlink. [Top]
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