The state’s four food banks (The Greater Boston Food Bank, The Food Bank of Western Massachusetts, The Merrimack Valley Food Bank, and The Worcester County Food Bank) gathered for a speaking program and advocacy day around the Massachusetts Emergency Food Assistance Program (MEFAP).
Established in 1995, MEFAP is an often-overlooked funding mechanism that fuels the state’s hunger-relief efforts, enabling the state’s food banks to distribute high-nutrition food to over 894 emergency food providers statewide. MEFAP is not only a hunger-relief tool but an economic stimulant, supporting local farms and agriculture.
The event celebrated 30 years of the program, and called for a $55.5M line item in the FY26 state budget.
These funds are particularly important to maintain the state’s hunger-relief efforts, positioned as an effective “replacement mechanism” as $3.3 million in USDA funding was cut from the state’s food system, effectively canceling 122,000 cases of food slated for families in need. Meanwhile, threats to SNAP benefits loom alongside high grocery prices and inflation.
Sal DiDomenico’s Remarks: But we all know, and as Mark mentioned and Representative Barbara mentioned, what’s happening at the national level, there is an assault – an assault on people in need. There’s an assault on programs that benefit people in need, and food science programs and SNAP – these have been on their radar since day one. And because of that, we have to prepare even more and give more at the state level to combat what is happening at the federal level. So, the $55.5 million ask for MEFAP this year is in my mind very reasonable.