The CUNY Urban Food Policy Institute has worked closely with staff and leadership at GrowNYC to evaluate the implementation of the organization’s Fresh Food Box (FFB) program in the South Bronx, funded under USDA’s Community Food Project portfolio, for the period of September 2018 – August 2021. With partners Bronxworks, Urban Health Plan, Children’s Aid Society, and Montefiore Medical Center, GrowNYC distributed thousands of fresh food boxes over the three year period to families in the South Bronx.

This evaluation was designed to answer the following questions:

  1.  To what extent have GrowNYC and its partners implemented the activities described in this proposal? What facilitators and barriers did staff encounter? How did they address these barriers?
  2. To what extent does USDA funding increase the reach, participation levels, intensity and duration of exposure to GrowNYC’s activities and the individual and community impact of the overall intervention?
  3. Does the short and middle term effects of supported GrowNYC activities vary by level of participation in these activities?
  4. What are facilitators and barriers to sustaining this program beyond the current USDA funding? How can GrowNYC and its partners best address barriers and leverage facilitators?