In the Community

July 17, 2012

California FreshWorks Fund Donates $105,000 to Three California Organizations

Thousands of families across California will soon have easier access to healthy foods as the result of grants awarded by the California FreshWorks Fund. A total of $105,100 in grants were awarded to the Community Development Foundation of Los Angeles County in North Long Beach, Heritage Education Group in Compton and Mandela Marketplace in West Oakland.

“Kaiser Permanente is proud to be a founding member of the California FreshWorks Fund,” Benjamin Chu, MD, MPH, MACP, group president for Kaiser Permanente Southern California and Kaiser Permanente Hawaii, said in a press release. “This grant demonstrates our commitment to total health by supporting environmental changes that improve the health of the communities we serve, making the healthier choice an easier choice.”

Continuing its commitment to increasing access to healthy fruits and vegetables in low-income communities, Kaiser Permanente announced in July 2011 that it was contributing $1 million as a founding member of the California FreshWorks Fund. The unique public-private partnership loan fund also aims to spur economic development that supports healthy communities and inspires innovation in healthy food retailing.

The loan and grant fund has raised $264 million to invest in bringing grocery stores and other healthy food retail outlets to underserved communities. CFWF grants are funded with the support of Kaiser Permanente and The California Endowment.