Free food baskets in San Gabriel Valley

Three new food hubs were unveiled on April 23 in the San Gabriel Valley area, offering free food baskets for community members through its Fresh SGV program.

The San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments (SGVCOG) established the food hubs to provide food for 20 cities in conjunction with nonprofit organizations. 

The new hubs will be operated by God’s Pantry in Pomona, Heart of Compassion in Montebello and Foothill Unity Center in Monrovia. 

The participating cities include Alhambra, Arcadia, Azusa, Baldwin Park, Covina, Duarte,  Glendora, Irwindale, La Cañada Flintridge, Monrovia, Monterey Park, Pomona, Rosemead, San Dimas, San Gabriel, San Marino, Sierra Madre, South El Monte, South Pasadena, Temple City and Walnut.

To support the health initiative, the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the American Beverage Association awarded a $175,000 grant to the SGVCOG and the City of Alhambra. The  California Department of Food and Agriculture bolstered the program with a $381,000 contribution from its Healthy Refrigeration Grant Program. The Fresh SGV program also received a $350,000 grant from the LA County Food Equity Fund and over $2.3 million from CalRecycle.

The program aims to recover an additional 3.3 million pounds of food per year through the hubs or about 2.75 million meals.

For more information about Fresh SGV visit www.sgvcog.org/regional-food-recovery-program