cityofboston.gov - Official Web Site of the City of Boston - Thomas M. Menino, Mayor

BostonCAN Share 2011

City departments, corporate and community partners, the Boston Public Schools and other city agencies make a direct contribution to hunger relief in our city. Each participating company or organization has a coordinator who promotes the food drive. Boston CAN Share provides promotional materials - posters and brochures - along with boxes that are used to collect donations.  Throughout the food drive, FedEx picks up the donations from each location for delivery to The Greater Boston Food Bank. The food is distributed to over 90 food pantries in Boston as well as area shelters and soup kitchens.

This year's CAN Share drive will run from Tuesday, October 25th through the month of December. It is important to end hunger and promote healthy eating. Our goal is to make Boston the healthiest city in the US. We recognize that for every Boston resident to live a healthy lifestyle, we must start by eradicating hunger and increasing access to healthy food.

25 Years Strong

This is the CAN Share campaign's 25th year. It's also the 25th year anniversary of the Farmers' Market Nutrition Program (FMNP) which was originated in Massachusetts in 1986 and launched by Thomas M. Menino before he was Mayor. FMNP was adopted nationally by Congress in 1992.

Mayor's Fresh Food Fund

During these hard economic times, it is refreshing to know that city residents are still able to have access to healthy, local farm products. The Mayor's Fresh Food Fund supports Boston Bounty Bucks and other food and hunger initiatives in the City.

Donations can be made out to:

Boston CAN Share
c/o Mayor's Office of Food Initiatives
1 City Hall Plaza, Room 603
Boston, MA 02201

Boston Bounty Bucks

The Food Project and the City of Boston are proud to sponsor the Boston Bounty Bucks program. This program is a dual effort to enable all residents of Boston access to local farm products available at area farmers' markets and also strengthen the economy for local farmers.

Now the more than 82,000 Boston residents that participate in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) can use their benefits at over 20 participating famers' markets.  All purchases made with SNAP benefits are matched up to $10.  In other words, SNAP users can get their food at 50% off up to $20 at farmers' markets.

This project is made possible by financial support from the Mayor's Fresh Food Fund, Project Bread, Farm Aid, and the Wholesome Wave Foundation. Between 2007 and 2010, the number of Boston farmers' markets that accept SNAP and participate in the Boston Bounty Bucks program increased from 1 to 21. We hope that all farmers' markets in Boston will participate soon.

The Greater Boston Food Bank

47% of people in Eastern Massachusetts at risk of going hungry earn too much to qualify for government assistance. Faced with food and housing costs higher than the national average in our area, and with many un- and underemployed, these families are finding it harder and harder to make ends meet.

The Greater Boston Food Bank's response to the growing number of people at risk of hunger in our communities is a commitment to increase food distribution from 35 million pounds this year to 38.4 million pounds by 2013.  That's enough to provide approximately 29.6 million meals - or the equivalent of one meal a day - to those at risk of hunger.