Keyword/Tag: USDA

Brighter Bites named a MyPlate National Strategic Partner

Posted on February 13, 2024 by -

Fresh produce nonprofit organization Brighter Bites has become a National Strategic Partner for MyPlate.

Brighter Bites joins other retailers, restaurants, suppliers and media outlets that have partnered with MyPlate to support the USDA’s Dietary Guidelines for Americans and help consumers across the country develop healthy lifestyles.

“We are proud to be a partner of an organization that not only matches our mission but also reaches so many families and individuals nationwide with an approachable guide to healthy eating,” said Rich Dachman, CEO of Brighter Bites. “As we continue to grow our program and reach more families nationwide, we are honored to be surrounded by so many other companies with similar goals. What an exciting and impactful group to join!”

Click here to read the full article.

Press Release: Brighter Bites Distributes 50,000 Produce Boxes Weekly on Behalf of USDA

Posted on June 17, 2020 by -

Brighter Bites Distributes 50,000 Produce Boxes per Week on Behalf of 

USDA Farmers to Families Food Box Program 

Nonprofit reaches more families than ever in six U.S. cities 

Houston, TX (June 17, 2020) – Brighter Bites is partnering with produce suppliers throughout the country in conjunction with the USDA Farmers to Families Food Box Program, a federal initiative developed specifically to distribute free agricultural products such as fresh produce, dairy, and meat, to those in need during the COVID-19 crisis. Through this initiative, Brighter Bites aims to ensure that the 25,000 current Brighter Bites families continue to receive approximately 20-25 pounds of produce just as they did before COVID-19 affected their communities. Brighter Bites has also been giving $25 produce vouchers bi-weekly to Brighter Bites households for fruit and vegetable purchases at local grocery stores to ensure all families have access to fresh produce at this crucial time of need. Brighter Bites is distributing these produce boxes to an additional 25,000 families that live in the same cities where Brighter Bites currently operates.

The USDA Farmers to Families Food Box Program, which was established under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, allows the USDA to partner with national, regional, and local produce suppliers whose distribution methods (through restaurants, hotels, other food service businesses) have been greatly impacted by COVID-19. Through the program, the suppliers purchase the unused fruits and vegetables, package it into boxes of mixed produce at their warehouse, and transport it to nonprofits like Brighter Bites to ensure the produce reaches those in need. The USDA reimburses the suppliers for the cost of the produce, labor, and transportation.

In an effort to maintain the Brighter Bites program during the crisis, Brighter Bites developed a new Family Resources page on its website, increased the frequency of its family newsletters, established social media channels in all six cities to increase access to program staff and resources, and enhanced communication with schools. Through these initiatives, Brighter Bites is providing information about local food distributions, mental health helplines, stress coping tips, and more. Brighter Bites is also providing a variety of nutrition education resources ranging from house-made nutrition spotlight videos to CATCH worksheets to PE activities.

Brighter Bites’ USDA produce box distributions began in mid-May.

Below find details about how Brighter Bites is collaborating with produce suppliers to help those in need in each of the organization’s service areas:

Brighter Bites Houston, TX with DiMare Fresh, GoFresh/Hardie’s Fresh Foods

  • 20 locations, including schools, churches and other community sites
  • 18,000 total boxes distributed weekly
  • 19 lbs per box

Brighter Bites Austin, TX with DiMare Fresh

  • 9 locations, including schools, parks & rec centers and YMCAs
  • 4,500 total boxes distributed weekly
  • 19 lbs per box

Brighter Bites Dallas, TX with GoFresh/Hardie’s Fresh Foods

  • 16 locations, including schools, YMCAs and other community sites
  • 9,000 total boxes distributed weekly
  • 18-28 lbs per box

Brighter Bites NYC with City Harvest, Perfect Pact, Tomato Thyme 

  • 10 locations, including schools
  • 5,770 total boxes distributed weekly
  • 15-20 lbs per box

Brighter Bites Washington, D.C. with Coastal Sunbelt Produce

  • 20 locations, including schools, churches, and other community sites
  • 9,050 total boxes distributed weekly
  • 24 lbs per box

Brighter Bites, SW Florida with Perfect Pact and Marjon Specialty Foods

  • 3 locations, including community sites and YMCAs
  • 2,300 total boxes  distributed weekly
  • 20 lbs per box

“Brighter Bites is incredibly proud to partner with Coastal Sunbelt Produce, DiMare Fresh, Hardie’s Fresh Foods, Perfect Pact, and others as we all work to distribute nutritious food to families experiencing food insecurity during this time,” said Brighter Bites Director of Sourcing Jennifer Boone. “As an organization, we were adamant that school closures would not stop us from continuing to carry out our mission, but we knew that we would need to shift our model. We are honored that produce distributors around the country trusted us to ensure families received their produce boxes from the Farmers to Families program.”

In response to receiving the produce boxes from Brighter Bites and the Greater Riverdale Partnership in Prince George’s County, MD, Pastor Everett Pope of United Baptist Church said “We have been absolutely blessed to receive these generous and kind produce donations. The response from our community has been overwhelming. We are thankful for the partnership forged by Council Member Dannielle Glaros, and for the compassionate work of the Brighter Bites team. We the people are grateful. This is the type of unity needed to survive the times.”

Prior to the COVID-19 crisis, Brighter Bites served over 25,000 families nationwide enrolled in the program across 100 schools, with each family receiving 25 pounds of fresh produce and nutrition education on a weekly basis. Then COVID-19 hit, schools shuttered, and families lost access to this fresh produce they were dependent on for daily nourishment.

“Brighter Bites is so pleased to be a part of this USDA emergency initiative,” said Brighter Bites CEO Rich Dachman. “We look forward to continuing to serve as an integral part of this federal program as we find new ways to identify, package, and deliver nutritious food to those in desperate need across the country.”

About Brighter Bites:

Brighter Bites is a nonprofit that creates communities of health through fresh food with the goal of changing behavior among children and their families to prevent obesity and achieve long-term health. Brighter Bites is an evidence-based, multi-component elementary school, preschool, and summer camp program that utilizes reliable access to fruits and vegetables, nutrition education, and consistent exposure to recipes and messages that feature fresh food. Since 2012, Brighter Bites has provided more than 27 million pounds of produce and millions of nutrition education materials to more than 275,000 individuals (including teachers) in Houston, Dallas, Austin, New York City, the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan area, and Southwest Florida. To learn more about Brighter Bites visit www.brighterbites.org.

Produce Blue Book: DiMare Fresh Outlines Farmers to Families Food Box Plan

Posted on May 14, 2020 by -

Produce Blue Book 

DALLAS, Texas (May 14, 2020) – DiMare Fresh, BB #:101247 a value-added distribution company specializing in produce and floral, has been selected to partner with USDA “Farmers to Families Food Box” program.

Being one of the few vertically integrated growers, DiMare Fresh will supply product through their distribution facilities in Texas to service nonprofit entities throughout the Southwest. The company will begin deliveries on Friday, May 15th as outlined by the USDA (the contract was for $24,363,660).

DiMare Fresh will utilize the USDA funds in their Texas operations in Dallas/Fort Worth and Houston which have been impacted with the loss of foodservice business. The direct store delivery model in both locations will be a seamless transition from distribution direct to restaurants to eligible nonprofits.

“We are honored to be a part of the USDA Farmers to Families Food Box program to fully utilize our southwest distribution centers to help families in need,” said Tony DiMare, an owner of family-owned and operated DiMare Fresh. “Aside from helping those in need of fresh food in the communities we serve, we’re also able to help other growers move their surplus of fresh U.S. produce.”

DiMare Fresh has long standing relationships with local and regional food banks and other nonprofits, such as the Houston Food Bank, North Texas Food Bank, Community Table and Brighter Bites. This funding will allow for DiMare Fresh to expand to other hunger relief organizations and operations working to provide those in need with fresh food.

“This partnership with DiMare Fresh will ensure Brighter Bites families in Houston and Austin continue to receive fresh, immune-boosting produce at a time when they need it most,” said Brighter Bites Director of Sourcing Jennifer Boone. “The program will allow us to expand our reach in those cities by more than 30%, and we’re grateful to DiMare for trusting Brighter Bites to distribute their product with the greatest care and consideration.”

As part of this program, the USDA will exercise authority under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act to purchase and distribute up to $3 billion in agricultural products to those in need. With this, the USDA has partnered with regional and local distributors whose workforce has been significantly impacted by the closure of many restaurants, hotels, and other food service entities, to purchase fresh produce, dairy, and meat.

For additional information and company updates, please visit www.dimarefresh.com.

About DiMare Fresh
DiMare Fresh is a provider of value-added distribution services in the form of repacking, ripening, consolidation and delivery of refrigerated food, specializing in produce and floral. We are proud of the DiMare name and reputation of integrity that was originally built as a tomato grower and repacker and is now expanded through our service and distribution network.

This article was also published in Perishable News and Produce News.

Brighter Bites Takes Washington!

Posted on June 5, 2016 by -

Lisa with Books at PHA

Last month members of the Brighter Bites leadership team and Rich Dachman, Sysco’s Vice President of Produce and a Brighter Bites Board Member, traveled to Washington, D.C. for high-level meetings at the United States Department of Agriculture, U.S. House of Representatives, and U.S. Senate. Founder Lisa Helfman and Rich Dachman had also been invited to participate in a panel on scaling grassroots programs through partnerships that week at the Partnership for a Healthier America (PHA) Building a Healthier Future Summit. Serendipitous meetings took place on the conference margins with leaders from PHA, Produce Marketing Association (PMA), Marathon Kids, JCC of America, The Food Trust, and other key organizations working to increase access to healthy food and physical activity.

Partnerships were the theme of the week and PHA set the tone with celebrity endorsements of fruit and vegetable consumption (FNV) and a humorous approach to drinking more water as they collaborate with Brita on Nalgene giveaways and others in the Drink Up campaign. The two-day Summit focused on building partnerships across sectors to make the healthy choice the easy choice.

Lisa and Rich at PHA

Lisa and Rich, representing Brighter Bites and Sysco, joined Marathon Kids Executive Director Christine Pollei and Nike Senior Director of North America Community Impact Caitlin Morris for a panel discussion on Growing the Grassroots: Scaling Through Partnership. Ladan Manteghi, Executive Director of the Global Social Enterprise Initiative at Georgetown’s McDonough School of Business, moderated a lively discussion about how these for-profit and nonprofit businesses are working together toward building healthier futures.

Lisa and Rich’s comments focused on Brighter Bites and Sysco’s shared mission to deliver fresh food directly to those who need it. Rich highlighted his admiration for Brighter Bites “figuring out how to get food down the last mile to kids” and his wish to “help Brighter Bites so we can reach kids throughout the country.” Lisa’s key messages focused on her own individual and organizational growth experience that developed out of the knowledge she gained from conversations and partnerships with experts in the field. Lisa and Rich’s panel discussion with Marathon Kids and Nike was highly attended and resulted in lively follow up discussions and requests for meetings.

Michelle Obama at PHA

The summit’s closing plenary featured PHA Honorary Chair and First Lady Michelle Obama whose presence so close to our table and speech was one of the most thrilling moments of the week, after our White House tour. The First Lady focused her comments on her support for the new FDA-approved nutrition facts label she had revealed at a press conference earlier that morning, the people in the room working toward creating a healthier future, and remembering to always put our children first. These were fitting words for the Brighter Bites team and our partners who work to create healthy communities through fresh food every day.

BB Team at Whte House