New Jersey Innovative Healthy Food Retail Initiative

New Jersey Innovative Healthy Food Retail Initiative is sponsored by Reinvestment Fund and The Food Trust (funded by Robert Wood Johnson Foundation). This initiative supports community-led, innovative food retail projects that improve access to healthy food and promote economic growth in low-income, underserved areas of New Jersey.

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5 million in grant funding to eight recipients during two rounds of the New Jersey Innovative Healthy Food Retail Initiative (NJ IHFRI).

About the New Jersey Innovative Healthy Food Retail Initiative The New Jersey Innovative Healthy Food Retail Initiative (“the Initiative”) supported eight community-led, innovative food retail projects that will improve access to healthy food and promote economic growth in low-income, underserved areas of New Jersey. Program development was informed by relevant food access research conducted for the state of New Jersey.

In 2020, the Food Research and Action Center (FRAC) reported that 1 in 12 households experienced food insecurity, meaning 285,000 New Jersey households did not have reliable access to affordable, nutritious food. In alignment with the New Jersey Food Security Initiative (NJFSI), the initiative sought to maximize equitable food purchasing power and support community development by prioritizing innovative approaches to food access.

The Initiative awarded grants to promising organizations who plan to pilot, operate, and sustain innovative food retail approaches. This was a two-year (2024-2026) community-centered effort to improve food access and nutrition to advance health equity in New Jersey. The New Jersey Innovative Healthy Food Retail Initiative is co-administered by Reinvestment Fund and The Food Trust and is funded by Robert Wood Johnson Foundation .

This initiative provided $1,500,000 in grant funds to be used for capital expenses and technical assistance for existing or new healthy food retail projects. Eight organizations were chosen for grant awards of up to $200,000 based on project type, community need, innovation, and project impact.

Grant funding was a one-time investment that will support innovative business models that either process, distribute, aggregate, market, or sell healthy, fresh, and affordable foods to underserved communities and markets in New Jersey. For more detailed information about uses of funds and eligibility, the Request for Applications can be found below.

Clinton Hill Community Action Project Name: The Fresh Food Co-op Location: Newark, New Jersey Description: Founded in 2019, Clinton Hill Community Action (CHCA) is a community led and resident-driven non-profit whose mission is to partner with residents to revitalize the Clinton Hill neighborhood, ensure equitable and just development, and advocate for what the community needs and deserves.

To have more control over the sourcing and retail distribution of Clinton Hill’s food, CHCA is supporting residents in planning for and launching the first-ever fresh food and grocery cooperative in the South Ward of Newark.

The New Jersey Innovative Healthy Food Retail Initiative will provide the funding to complete the necessary market studies, business planning and design work that will allow residents to understand the economics and dynamics of creating a sustainable retail enterprise in Clinton Hill.

CHCA will support the ongoing engagement of community members in learning about and beginning to run a sustainable retail food enterprise, including the election and orientation of an inaugural Board, defining what cooperative membership means and recruiting the first 350 members.

Project Name: Camden Corner Stores Fresh Produce Bulk Purchase Initiative Location: Camden, New Jersey Description: Karnival Foods is a community-based business created to address a lack of nutritious items that are often missing from local corner stores.

The Karnival Foods initiative seeks to give business owners who are part of the Camden Corner Store Business Association the ability to purchase fresh produce, water and other essential items in bulk at wholesale prices. This purchasing power will lower the cost of what the corner stores would pay individually, allowing them to pass these savings on to the community.

Karnival Foods has acquired a warehouse space and will use NJ IHFRI grant funding to begin infrastructure improvements on the building such as installing new fencing, new roofing and exterior siding to the current building. Karnival Foods’ role will be providing a facility for the distribution of bulk purchasing.

Community outreach and engagement and leveraging additional capital support will come from The Food Trust, Camden Food Fund, The Camden Corner Store Association, and Pinelands Preservation Alliance.

New Hope Community Ministries Project Name: The Harvest Location: Prospect Park, New Jersey Description: New Hope Community Ministries is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization offering a variety of programs, forming a holistic approach to breaking the cycle of poverty in Haledon and Prospect Park, NJ.

The Harvest is a food buying club aimed at providing access to healthy and affordable food to lower-income residents of Prospect Park and Haledon, NJ. The Harvest will provide a more accessible alternative to the single supermarket in the area. The New Jersey Innovative Food Retail Initiative will support New Hope Community Ministries’ expansion of its efforts for The Harvest food buying club.

Funding from the Initiative will support the organization’s efforts to expand the program’s capacity to serve more food insecure residents of Prospect Park and Haledon, NJ through the hiring of a research marketing consultant and purchase of storage equipment to outfit the expanded facility.

Project Name: Phillipsburg Co-op: Marketplace & Community Hub Location: Phillipsburg, New Jersey Description: Originally established in 1965, Norwescap’s mission is to strengthen communities by creating opportunities that improve the lives of low-income individuals/families; with a vision to help build a community that transforms poverty into opportunity.

To support this mission, Norwescap is launching a cooperative marketplace and community hub in Phillipsburg, NJ, to address the critical need for fresh, nutritious food in an area designated as a food desert. The marketplace will provide fresh, locally sourced produce through a sliding-scale Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program, alongside dairy, eggs, meats, and shelf-stable goods.

It will serve as a vital connection point to Norwescap’s broader services and also offer nutrition education and cultural programming. The New Jersey Innovative Healthy Food Retail Initiative funding will support essential project staff and contractual services via The Foodshed Alliance and New Roots, as well as equipment, initial food inventory and the development of the CSA Mobile app.

Project Name: Villages Community Marketplace Location: Burlington, New Jersey Description: The Opportunity League (TOL) is a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organization headquartered in Burlington, NJ with a mission to build communities by providing opportunities that promote health & equity. The Villages Community Marketplace (VCM) is a 6,000 sq. ft.

community-centered grocery store designed to increase access to fresh, affordable food while fostering economic and workforce development in Burlington City. The New Jersey Innovative Healthy Food Retail Initiative will support this work by funding critical components such as store fixtures, equipment, technology, and initial inventory purchases, ensuring a fully operational market by early 2026.

This initiative willsignificantly enhance food access for over 10,000 residents, support local businesses, and create jobs within the community. Project Name: Fig | Mint Cooperative Market Location: Trenton, New Jersey Description: Orchid House Cafe is a social enterprise based in Trenton, NJ, committed to changing the way people eat, live, and treat each other.

Through its cafe, urban farm, and community initiatives, they promote food sovereignty, sustainability, and economic inclusion. The Fig | Mint Cooperative Market is a community-driven initiative that will transform the existing Orchid House Cafe into a functional marketplace that provides fresh, affordable, and culturally relevant food to local residents.

This project will establish a cooperative model, empowering small food producers, local entrepreneurs, and community members to play an active role in the local food economy. The New Jersey Innovative Healthy Food Retail Initiative will support this work by providing critical funding to outfit the market with essential infrastructure, including refrigeration, display fixtures, and storage. Project Name: Project H.

O. P. E.

Location: Salem, New Jersey Description: For over 60 years, Ranch Hope has used a holistic approach to address the various and complex challenges facing the Salem, NJ community through youth programs, healthcare and healthy eating education, and housing. Ranch Hope has been working together with a collaborative of organizations for the last 1.

5 years to implement a model of community revitalization in Salem City, leading to Ranch Hope’s Project H. O. P.

E. – Healthy Options Provided for Everyone, a community-led grocery store. The New Jersey Innovative Healthy Food Retail Initiative will provide funding for predevelopment support for community engagement in the store’s development, design and organizational structure, ensuring the store’s sustainability and success in the long-term.

United Way of Passaic County Project Name: A Better Market Expansion Location: Paterson, New Jersey Description: The United Way of Passaic County (UWPC) is driven by the mission to improve the lives of people in Passaic County by mobilizing the caring power of their community.

As a community impact organization, UWPC addresses poverty and socioeconomic inequality through services, partnerships, and civic engagement, promoting equitable and sustainable change. UWPC, in partnership with A Better Market, will launcha series of community-based satellite markets to expand the reach of it’s brick and mortar location.

A Better Market, founded by a Paterson resident in 2020, is a mission-driven grocer sourcing from Black-owned farms and businesses, that serves 3,500+ residents annually. Funding from the New Jersey Innovative Healthy Food Retail Initiative will support critical infrastructure upgrades and provide start-up capital for equipment and initial inventory for the satellite markets to better meet community needs.

Due to the significant disparities in food access across New Jersey, to be considered for the Initiative, eligible applicants must have proposed a healthy food retail project in an eligible underserved community.

Eligible projects had to expand or preserve the availability of an assortment of staple and perishable foods in communities experiencing higher rates of hunger and poverty and historically limited access to fresh, affordable foods. To be determined eligible for the Initiative, projects: Must serve a low to moderate income area with a median family income equal to or below 80% of median local income levels.

Must serve a Low Supermarket Access (LSA) area or be in a New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA) designated Food Desert Community. The interactive eligibility map below identifies underserved areas across New Jersey. Data mapped by PolicyMap , an online GIS mapping tool.

2024 Request for Applications (RFA) 2024 NJ IHFRI Informational Webinar 2024 NJ IHFRI Webinar Presentation Slides Wallace Center: Innovations in Local Food Enterprise NJEDA Food Desert Community Designation Frequently Asked Questions Smart Simple Registration Guide If you have questions about this opportunity or eligibility, please reach out to: nj-innovativehealthyfoodretail@reinvestment.

com Senior Program Manager, Equitable Food Systems