The Denver Department of Public Health & Environment (DDPHE) is pleased to announce the next Healthy Food for Denver’s Kids (HFDK) funding opportunity as part of their commitment to improving food access in Denver. DDPHE’s HFDK program is releasing its third Request for Proposal (RFP) for programs that support access to healthy food and food-based education in Denver.
Funded through the 2018 Denver ballot initiative 302, community-based nonprofits, public schools, and City and County of Denver agencies can apply for grants to improve access to healthy food and food-based education for youth. To date, HFDK has awarded nearly $18 million to over 80 organizations providing healthy food access to youth and their families in Denver.
“Healthy Food for Denver’s Kids is an incredibly successful program that provides funding and support for
innovative programs and services that meet critical food and nutrition needs in our community,” said DDPHE
Executive Director Bob McDonald. “This round of funding is focused on early childhood because crucial growth and
development is happening during a child’s earliest years.”
Applications will be accepted from nonprofit organizations (including child care providers and early childhood support organizations), individual public schools (including the Denver Public Schools district), and City and County of Denver departments/agencies that support Denver youth in the following program priority areas:
• Improving healthy food access and nutrition quality for children ages 5 and under in early care and education (ECE) settings in Denver
• Improving nutrition education, food skills and healthy eating environments for children, families, caregivers, and staff in ECE settings in Denver
• Increasing access to and participation in federal nutrition assistance programs (e.g., Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP), Summer Meal Service Program (SFSP), National School Lunch Program (NSLP), etc.) for youth ages 18 and under (especially birth to five) and their families
This third funding round includes an emphasis on early childhood. For example, organizations could propose projects around implementing farm to child/farm to early childhood education (F2ECE) projects, including local food purchasing, gardening, and agriculture/food/health/nutrition education for children ages 0-5 in ECE settings. HFDK anticipates collecting $12 million dollars in 2022. In 2021, HFDK funded approximately 71% of eligible applicants, with an average grant size of approximately $278,000. HFDK anticipates funding up to 15 proposals and expects to award up to $3 million per year as part of this specific early childhood funding opportunity. An information session is scheduled for Jan. 26, 2022, from 12:30-2 p.m. local time. Attendees are asked to
register in advance for the session. Applications are due Feb. 22, 2022. More information about applying for funding is at Denvergov.org/HFDKGrants. Learn more about the program in general at Denvergov.org/HealthyFoodforDenversKids. Materials, including the RFP, are available in Spanish upon request.
