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Community Food Advocates Inc
New York, NY · EIN 271764219 · Form 990 · FY2024 · NTEE K30 · Food, Agriculture & Nutrition · Small ($100K-$1M) · communityfoodadvocatesnyc.org
revenue
$922K
expenses
$1.2M
net assets
$1.3M
employees
7
program ratio
80%
mission · from form 990

Community Food Advocates, Inc. (CFA) mission is to utilize high-impact public policy that ensures all New Yorkers have access to healthy, affordable, culturally affirming foods within a sustainable and equity-centered food system.

profile · synthesized from sources

Community Food Advocates Inc (CFA) is a New York-based nonprofit advancing public policy to ensure all New Yorkers have access to healthy, affordable, and culturally affirming food. The organization leads advocacy campaigns around values-based food procurement, universal free school meals, and equitable supermarket access. CFA works through coalition-building, research, and youth engagement to transform the food system with a focus on racial and economic equity.

irs program accomplishments · form 990 part iii · fy2024

What they reported doing

  1. #1 primary $395K
    Good Food Purchasing Program - CFA leads the New York State Good Food Purchasing Program (NYS GFPP) Campaign, to expand the impact of values-based food procurement across new York State. We have built a coalition of organizations that represent and seek to transform the food system through the lens of the five GFPP values to improve institutional procurement in municipalities throught New York.
  2. #2 $47K
    Supermarket Access - CFA researches supermarket access in NYC with the goal of bringing together key partners to identify a bold comprehensive approach to address this long entrenched problem of lack of supermarket access in low income communities.
named programs · 5 · from sources

What they call their work

Good Food Purchasing Program (GFPP)
Advocates for values-based food procurement in public institutions across NYC and New York State, focusing on local economies, health, racial equity, workforce, animal welfare, and environmental sustainability.
Healthy School Meals for All NY Kids
Statewide campaign in partnership with Hunger Solutions New York to establish a permanent program providing free healthy school meals to all students in New York State.
Lunch 4 Learning (L4L)
Coalition campaign that successfully achieved universal free school meals in NYC; continues to advocate for improvements in school food quality, halal/kosher options, and cafeteria redesign.
Supermarket Access
Research and advocacy initiative focused on expanding access to affordable, quality supermarkets in low-income and gentrifying neighborhoods in NYC through city-owned stores and cooperative models.
Youth Leadership
Program that trains young people to become food justice leaders through experiential learning, policy engagement, and initiatives like the Youth Food Advocates (YFA) Menu Survey.
activities · 3 groups

What they do

  • Food Policy Advocacy & Nutrition Education 6 activities
    • Advancing the Good Food Purchasing Program in New York City and State
      Leads advocacy efforts to adopt and implement the Good Food Purchasing Program across New York City and state institutions, including co-leading campaigns, introducing legislation in the City Council in 2019 and the State Legislature in 2021, and securing adoption in seven of eleven NYC food-serving agencies.
    • Advocating for equitable supermarket access and city-owned grocery initiatives
      Conducts research and provides policy recommendations to improve supermarket access in low-income and gentrifying neighborhoods, and collaborates with the Mamdani administration to advance the city-owned supermarket initiative in New York City.
    • Advocating for universal free school meals and improved school food systems
      Launched and led the Lunch 4 Learning campaign in 2013, contributing to the 2017 implementation of universal free school meals in NYC; continues advocacy for improvements such as halal/kosher options and cafeteria redesign, and co-leads the statewide Healthy School Meals for All campaign.
    • Conducting long-term community food advocacy
      Has been engaged in community food advocacy work since the 1960s, focusing on systemic change through policy, research, and coalition building.
    • Conducting research on food access and policy impacts
      Produces research to inform food policy strategies, including studies on supermarket access in NYC and the anticipated impact of adopting the Good Food Purchasing Program, culminating in actionable policy recommendations.
    • Providing public policy advocacy for racially equitable food systems
      Integrates racial equity into public policy work and coalition-building efforts to ensure access to healthy, affordable, and culturally appropriate food for all New Yorkers.
  • Public Benefits Navigation and Enrollment 1 activity
    • Conducting educational outreach on emergency nutrition benefits
      Provided public education on Pandemic EBT (P-EBT) benefits during the COVID-19 pandemic to increase access to emergency nutrition support.
  • Youth Leadership Development Programs 1 activity
    • Engaging youth in food system advocacy and leadership development
      Provides experiential learning and leadership opportunities for young people through the citywide Youth Food Advocates cohort launched in 2020, and collects student input via surveys that inform school food improvements.
financials · form 990 · fy2024
revenue
Total revenue$922K
Contributions & grants$904K98%
Program service revenue$00%
Investment income$00%
Other revenue$18K
expenses
Total expenses$1.23M
Program expenses80%
Admin / overhead8%
Fundraising11%
Salaries & benefits$793K
Grants paid out$75K
Largest expense lineCompensation
balance sheet
Total assets$1.35M
Cash$807K
Investments$0
Liabilities$76K
Net assets$1.28M
Liquid reserves7.8 mo
6 years on record · 2019–2024 · YoY revenue -44.4%
leadership · form 990 part vii · fy2024

Who runs it

paid leadership · 1
NameTitleHours/wkCompensation
Elizabeth Accles Executive Diretor 35 $168K
board members · 13
  • Amy Rosenthal — Member
  • Antoinette Emers — Member
  • Claudia Dymond — Treasurer
  • Dominic Sanchez — Member
  • Jan Poppendieck — Member
  • Marissa Finn - Hersh — Member
  • Mercedes Turner — Secretary
  • Minerva Delgado — Chairperson
  • Monique Lindsay — Member
  • Nina Guercio — Member
  • Robyn Furman — Vice Chairperson
  • Tamara Missick — Member
  • Tina Stinson-DaCruz — Member
relationships · 21

Who they work with

  • American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) Partner — Member of the NYC Good Food Purchasing Program Coalition
  • BIPOC individuals and organizations Partner — Engages with BIPOC individuals and organizations through inclusive coalitions and by honoring their capacity and labor.
  • CUNY Urban Food Policy Institute Partner — Coalition partner in the NYC and NYS Good Food Purchasing Program campaigns
  • Center for Good Food Purchasing Partner — Local affiliate organization partnering with CFA on the NYC Good Food Purchasing Program campaign
  • City Harvest Partner — Member of both the NYC and NYS Good Food Purchasing Program coalitions
  • Earthjustice Partner — Member of both the NYC and NYS Good Food Purchasing Program coalitions
  • Food Chain Workers Alliance Partner — Coalition partner in the NYC and NYS Good Food Purchasing Program campaigns
  • Good Food Purchasing Program Partner — Collaborates to advance values-based food procurement in public institutions across New York State.
  • Hunger Solutions NY Partner — Co-leads the Healthy School Meals for All NY Kids Coalition with Community Food Advocates.
  • Hunger Solutions New York Partner — Partner organization co-leading the Healthy School Meals for All campaign to establish permanent universal free school meals in New York State.
  • Lenox Hill Neighborhood House Partner — Member of both the NYC and NYS Good Food Purchasing Program coalitions
  • Mamdani administration Government — Government partner collaborating with Community Food Advocates on the development of city-owned supermarkets.
  • Mamdani administration Partner — Collaborates with Community Food Advocates on the city-owned supermarket initiative in New York City.
  • NYC Department of Small Business Services Government — Partnered with on the FRESH program, which is referenced in policy analysis.
  • NYC Public Schools Office of Food and Nutrition Services Partner — Collaborated with Youth Food Advocates to implement menu updates and new feedback tools based on student survey data.
  • Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) Partner — Member of the NYC Good Food Purchasing Program Coalition
  • New York Foundation Partner — Interviewed and filmed the team for promotional and educational content.
  • Supermarket Access Coalition Partner — Coalition partner collaborating with Community Food Advocates to advance city-owned supermarkets.
  • The Common Market Partner — Member of both the NYC and NYS Good Food Purchasing Program coalitions
  • World Animal Protection Partner — Member of both the NYC and NYS Good Food Purchasing Program coalitions
  • key partners Partner — Collaborates with partners to develop a comprehensive approach to improve supermarket access in NYC neighborhoods.
strategies · 5

How they approach the work

Named approaches extracted from this org’s sources. Where others share an approach, follow it to see the full set of orgs running it.

  • Community-Led Advocacy for Systemic Change
    methodology: community_led_advocacy
    By centering the leadership and lived experience of people most directly affected by food insecurity, we produce more effective and equitable policy solutions because authentic community partnership ensures that interventions address root causes and are culturally grounded.
  • Racial Equity-Centered Policy Advocacy
    methodology: racial_equity_centered_advocacy
    By embedding racial equity into policy design, coalition building, and institutional procurement, we produce more just food systems because systemic inequities in access and power are directly addressed through targeted structural interventions.
  • Student-Centered Design in Food Policy
    methodology: student_centered_design
    By integrating student perspectives and experiences into research and advocacy, we create more effective and equitable school food systems because policies grounded in youth voice are more likely to meet real needs and drive engagement.
  • Universal School Meals to Advance Health and Reduce Stigma
    methodology: universal_access_school_meals
    By eliminating cost barriers to school meals, we increase participation and improve child health and academic outcomes because universal access removes stigma and ensures all students receive nutritious food as a right.
  • Values-Based Public Procurement as Systemic Lever
    methodology: values_based_procurement
    By aligning institutional food purchasing with racial equity, local economic development, environmental sustainability, worker well-being, and animal welfare, we transform food systems because public spending becomes a tool for advancing multiple intersecting justice goals.