Community Changer: Ci4Ci (Community Initiatives for Collective Impact)
Here at Replate, partnering with other non-profit organizations within the food recovery space is a core part of what we do.
While a bulk of our operations take place in major metropolitan areas (I.E. San Francisco, NYC, Silicon Valley), we also try our best to serve communities that may be overlooked in the larger conversation about food access and recovery.
California’s Central Valley is a prime example of such an area - with nearly 7 million people within it, it’s one of the fastest-growing areas in the state - and also one of the most hungry. Despite supplying nearly 25% of the country’s produce, many Central Valley residents lack access to nutritious, affordable food.
That’s where organizations like Ci4Ci - Community Initiatives for Collective Impact - step in.
Based out of Merced, California, Ci4Ci is a grassroots non-profit organization that focuses on environmental, economic, and community development.
Through a relationship with the University of Merced, California (UC Merced), Ci4Ci also runs its own food rescue operation, where fresh food is recovered from local businesses by university students, volunteers, and paid Ci4Ci staff — this rescued food is then distributed directly to the local community via a few different programs.
The need for food recovery in the Merced area grew organically around 2018, notes Erin Meyer, Ci4Ci’s Director of Food Rescue and Health and Wellness Initiatives, as various businesses and farmer’s markets in the area began reaching out to Erin expressing a need for their surplus food to be recovered.
Ci4Ci stocks community fridges throughout Merced with this rescued food, and some of it is even brought to other nearby communities - like Delhi, Atwater, and Livingston.
In addition to the community fridges, Ci4Ci also provides "Family Nutrition Hubs” (boxes of fresh food delivered directly to delivered to daycare providers for the families that they serve) as well as health education and coaching – all of which are aimed at assisting food insecure populations in Merced county.
Ci4Ci allows its recipients to remain anonymous - they do not ask recipients for ID, proof of income/residence, or other requirements one might encounter when attempting to access such services. Typically, these traditional requirements can actually serve as barriers to those who need access to fresh food or other important resources.
Language can also serve as another barrier. According to Mireya Arana, student intern working with UC Merced/Ci4Ci’s food rescue operation, a significant portion of the clients that Ci4Ci serves are monolingual Spanish speakers. These community members may face additional challenges or feel discouraged when attempting to access public resources, but Ci4Ci makes it as easy as possible for them by having Spanish-speaking community members play a key part in their operations.
By removing these traditional barriers, Ci4Ci is able to extend food access throughout their community.
At the start of 2024, Ci4Ci partnered with Replate to rescue food surplus from a local Merced hospital on a weekly basis. The donations from this program directly support Ci4Ci’s food recovery and distribution efforts, and we’re grateful to be able support such an impactful organization.
So far, Ci4Ci has already rescued and distributed close to 600 lbs of food in our partnership!
Food recovery itself is a collaborative effort, and we wouldn’t be able to do what we do without partnerships like the one we have with Community Initiatives for Collective Impact.
Thank you for all that you do!
Learn more about Ci4Ci here.
Learn more about businesses donating food as part of SB 1383!