Texas Department of Agriculture Announces $8.5 Million Available to Feed Homebound Texans (10/7/2015)

AUSTIN - The Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) today announced the availability of $8.5 million in grant funding to assist nonprofit groups and local governmental agencies through the Texans Feeding Texans: Home-Delivered Meal Grant Program. More than 18 percent of our state’s elderly population is facing the threat of hunger. With that in mind, the 84^th Texas Legislature increased funding for this vital grant program.

“We must do everything in our power to make sure our fellow Texans never go hungry,” Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller said. “This funding will help fill the stomachs and hearts of people who need it most. We’re giving them a helping hand, not a handout. The home-delivered meal program keeps people out of institutional care and in the comfort of their own homes, while saving taxpayer dollars. It also gives seniors and those with special needs an opportunity to live where they are in a secure, happy and healthy environment close to family and friends.”

Through TDA’s Home-Delivered Meal Grant Program, organizations are able to provide nutritious meals on a daily basis to elderly citizens and disabled residents in the comfort of their own homes. Since 2008, TDA has awarded nearly $73 million in grant funds to meal providers. This program has helped many meal providers eliminate their waiting lists for individuals needing home-delivered meals. Already in 2015, TDA has awarded a total of $8.5 million in grant funds to 134 organizations serving 162 Texas counties. This has helped providers serve more than 13 million meals annually statewide.

The Texans Feeding Texans: Home-Delivered Meal Grant Program was created during the 80th Legislative Session in 2007 to give supplemental funding to home-delivered meal providers. The grants are based partly on the number of meals eligible applicants served the year prior to applying. Funds can only be used to supplement and expand existing services related to the delivery of meals. Eligible entities are nonprofit organizations and governmental agencies. Applicants must receive a financial grant from their county through a formal resolution to be eligible for the program.

Home-delivered meal providers are encouraged to apply for the 2016 Texans Feeding Texans: Home-Delivered Meal Grant Program by the postmark deadline of Nov. 2, 2015. For more information, contact TDA’s Grants Office at Grants@TexasAgriculture.gov. Click here to download an application today.