One in eight U.S. households struggles to access enough food, and that number is on the rise.[1] The American Heart Association is building on its 100 years of lifesaving service to fund social enterprises to sustainably improve this driver of health and change the future of health for all.
To that end, the Bernard J. Tyson Impact Fund, part of American Heart Association Ventures' Social Impact Funds, is distributing $900,000 to four organizations:
- , based in Kansas City, Missouri, provides access to personalized, nutritious groceries and educational resources for those living with chronic health conditions;
- , based in Hudson, New York, is a farmer-owned cooperative supporting farm viability, food access and regenerative agriculture through technology, including the GrownBy e-commerce platform that connects consumers to more than 500 farms in 48 states;
- , based in Webb, Mississippi, operates Farmacy Marketplace to increase food security as a fresh food access point for Tallahatchie County's 12,000 residents; and
- Nectar, based in Chicago, a platform that drives innovation in food security by delivering food as medicine in partnership with charitable food organizations.
The funding is made possible by a grant from the Walmart Foundation to support companies and organizations that combat food insecurity. Through the Walmart Foundation's contributions, the Bernard J. Tyson Impact Fund supports social enterprises offering solutions that specifically address food security, particularly among mothers, infants and people with diabetes.
Recipients of funding from the Bernard J. Tyson Impact Fund include both nonprofit and for-profit organizations working to positively impact factors that affect cardiovascular health in historically under-resourced communities. The Fund provides essential financial capital to these enterprises that, in many cases, struggle to source private venture capital or alternative sources of funding to accelerate their growth and scale their impact. Previous financial support from the Walmart Foundation has already enabled more than 20 social benefit organizations to improve local food ecosystems across Atlanta and Chicago.
"Through the generous support of the Walmart Foundation, the Bernard J. Tyson Impact Fund provides critical capital funding to social impact entrepreneurs so they can grow successfully," said Lisa Suennen, managing partner of American Heart Association Ventures. "By providing resources and funding for these social enterprises that have a deep understanding of the people within the communities in which they work, we expect to see wide-reaching and lasting impact to change the future of health for all.
Learn more at heart.org/socialimpactfunds.
Additional Resources
- Spanish news release (Coming Soon)
- Population shifts, risk factors may triple U.S. cardiovascular disease costs by 2050
- Alarming trends call for action to define the future role of food in nation's health
- AHA Social Impact Funds aim to improve health disparities in under-resourced communities
- AHA, Walmart Foundation strengthen food ecosystems to improve food access
