San Francisco-Marin Food Bank Ends
Pandemic Response Pop-Up Pantry Program
San Francisco, Calif. (June 10, 2025) –The San Francisco-Marin Food Bank ended its Pop-Up Pantry program in San Francisco and Marin on Friday, June 6, 2025. The final day of service marked the end of the Food Bank’s pandemic response programs due to the loss of overall government funding. Pop-Ups were supposed to operate for just a few weeks when COVID-19 hit but continued for five years to serve those facing hunger.
“We are extremely proud of the impact the Food Bank has made in helping tens of thousands of people put food on their tables,” said Executive Director Tanis Crosby. “These required service cuts are coming at a time when food insecurity is now higher than at the height of the pandemic. And, it will only get worse with proposed federal cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP/CalFresh in California) that will restrict critical benefits, eliminate 9 billion meals nationally for low-income families, and drive more people to food banks that won’t be able to provide adequate services to fill the hunger gap.”
The Food Bank joins with Feeding America, the California Association of Food Banks, and our community partners in sounding the alarm that proposed SNAP changes and other government cuts to food security programs will be devastating for low- and moderate-income families. The Food Bank is urging:
— U.S. Senators and House Members to reject the proposed cuts to SNAP at the federal level. These proposed cuts will be the equivalent of eliminating over 9 billion meals for low-income Americans.
— The Governor, state, and local leaders prioritize access to SNAP (CalFresh in California) and benefit adequacy and support charitable food access programs at a scale that meets demand.
The Food Bank remains steadfast in its advocacy for participants facing food insecurity and for coordinated resources to meet the needs of our community. We will continue to collaborate with our partners to address the hunger we see today and on solutions to end hunger tomorrow. Efforts to rebuild capacity in the neighborhood pantry network are ongoing, and the Food Bank is working with its partners to launch several Community Markets over the next year. Offering a grocery store-like experience, Community Markets provide participants with the dignity of choice in selecting healthy, nutritious food at flexible times and importantly connects them with supportive services to help address the reasons they are seeking charitable food.
While the Food Bank has successfully transferred more than 2,700 Pop-Up Pantry households to neighborhood pantries and to new Community Markets, regrettably, 6,500 households remain on the waitlist for available space and will go without services in the interim. The Food Bank will continue to work to transfer as many participants as possible to available spaces within our partner network. We encourage individuals and families in need of food assistance to contact the Food bank at (415) 824-3663 or email help@sfmfoodbank.org, and use the food locator tool on our website: sfmfoodbank.org/find-food. They can also find other resources by contacting 211.
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ABOUT THE FOOD BANK
The San Francisco-Marin Food Bank’s mission is to end hunger in San Francisco and Marin, where even before the pandemic, one in five neighbors was at risk of hunger. We envision a community where everyone has access to nutritious food of their choosing and is uplifted by a network of support. Together with community partners, we work to address hunger head-on through neighborhood food pantries, CalFresh enrollment, home-delivered groceries, and policy and advocacy efforts. We work with our community to create lasting solutions to address both the hunger we see today and the root causes that perpetuate food insecurity in our society. Every week, more than 50,000 households count on us for food assistance. Nearly 70% of what we distribute is fresh fruits and vegetables. Visit sfmfoodbank.org to learn more.
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