Virginia Community Capital (VCC) is a Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) and bank that serves the entire commonwealth of Virginia. In 2013, VCC launched the Virginia Fresh Food Loan Fund (VFFLF) to enhance access to nutritious foods in Virginia’s inner cities, small towns and rural communities. As a CDFI, VCC supports small businesses and community development projects by offering flexible capital, investment opportunities and advisory services. With a commitment to finance $10 million in projects through the VFFLF, VCC works with a wide range of healthy food enterprises, including grocery stores, food hubs, healthy food manufacturers and processors, mobile markets, farmers markets and food cooperatives.

Two years after VFFLF was established, VCC received a $2.6 million federal grant from the U.S. Department of Treasury CDFI Fund, which included $1 million in grant funds from the federal Healthy Food Financing Initiative (HFFI). This grant allowed VCC to enhance its investment in healthy food projects serving lower-income, underserved communities throughout Virginia.

VCC works closely with various state agencies, including the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Forestry. VCC also serves on the Commonwealth Council on Bridging the Nutritional Divide and partners with the American Heart Association and The Food Trust to secure state funds to help launch a public-partnership dedicated to improving food access. Additionally, VCC is a member of Reinvestment Fund’s ReFresh Initiative, a national network of practitioners engaged to improve access to healthy food across the United States.

For a full understanding of Healthy Food Financing Initiatives from advocacy to implementation, see The Food Trust’s Healthy Food Financing Handbook.