Improving Access to Healthy Food

California is creating a new model for financing healthy food access, with leadership from philanthropy. The California Endowment and partners are developing the California FreshWorks Fund (CAFWF), a public-private partnership loan fund created to increase access to healthy food in underserved communities; spur economic development that supports healthy communities; and inspire innovation in healthy food retailing. CAFWF will finance grocery stores and other forms of healthy food retail and distribution by providing a combination of loan and grant financing to eligible applicants. The CAFWF is among the first of The California Endowment's new mission-related investments. The Fund, which has raised over $200 million, will be capitalized with a combination of debt and grant capital.

First Lady Michelle Obama announcing the release of CA Healthy Food Financing Initiative:

• http://www.whitehouse.gov/photos-and-video/video/2011/07/20/bringing-healthy-affordable-food-underserved-communities

PolicyLink links on the release of the CA Healthy Food Financing Initiative:

• http://equityblog.org/2011/07/20/growing-american-jobs-while-slimming-down-obesity/
• http://equityblog.org/2011/07/20/policylink-joins-first-lady-michelle-obama-and-partners-for-california-freshworks-fund-launch/