King County partners with hunger relief organization to provide $755,000 in grant funding to strengthen local food infrastructure after federal spending cuts

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King County Executive Shannon Braddock today announced a combined $755,000 in grant funding to support local hunger relief organizations, farm businesses, and food distributors after cuts in federal funding halted plans to build a regional hub.

The 22 grant recipients will use the funding to purchase commercial refrigerators, freezers, ovens, and other critical infrastructure needed to safely store, process, prepare, and distribute fresh food to those in need.

When authorized federal funding for a planned South Seattle Community Food Hub was abruptly withdrawn earlier this year, partners King County and Harvest Against Hunger redirected $755,000 in local funding to assist nonprofit organizations that contribute to hunger relief.

“King County is stepping up to support trusted organizations that help our neighbors who are experiencing hunger,” said King County Executive Shannon Braddock. “These small grants support the infrastructure that helps get nutritious food from farmland to table for those most in need.”

More than 60 organizations applied for the grant funding, requesting a total of nearly $4 million.

“The King County Local Food Infrastructure Grant is essential to building a thriving local food system,” said David Bobanick, Executive Director of Harvest Against Hunger. “By funding critical infrastructure such as refrigeration, freezers, and processing equipment, the program enables community organizations to safely store and distribute culturally relevant, nutritious food to those who need it most — while also strengthening markets for local farmers and food producers.”

Here are a few of the projects that will receive King County Local Food System Infrastructure Grant funding administered by the Department of Natural Resources and Parks:

Farmstand Local Foods: The grant will greatly expand Farmstand Local Foods’ refrigeration and freezer capacity, which currently limits the sales and distribution organization’s ability to purchase and distribute products farmed in King County and beyond, while supporting local food partners with their distribution networks and enhancing efficiency in serving wholesale and home delivery customers.

During the cooler months Farmstand Local Foods purchases bulk loads of storage crops from farmers to sell in smaller quantities to chefs and even smaller units for home delivery customers throughout the year. Increased refrigeration capacity clears the way for expanding this program in terms of volume, variety of products, and the number of participating farmers.

El Centro de la Raza: The food bank at El Centro de la Raza in Seattle’s Beacon Hill neighborhood will use the funding to repair its walk-in cooler. Having a fully functional cooler increases El Centro de la Raza’s ability to increase the variety and quantity of fresh produce and dairy products to their food bank participants, and to serve even more community members.

Boys and Girls Club of King County: The southwest King County organization will use the funding to purchase mini and full-sized refrigerators, a full freezer, plus a variety of storage containers and kitchen items, improving their capacity to safely store, process, prepare, and distribute food to club youth and families. The organization has partnerships with the White Center Food Bank and Aash Farms in Woodinville, and the new materials means they can extend the shelf-life of fresh produce, increase capacity to freeze surplus items for later use, and expand the quantity and variety of foods available to the 325 youth and families served annually.

Sound Generations: Grant funding will be used to expand the Sound Generations Community Dining program, a nutritious and affordable hot lunch program for older adults that operates at 27 sites throughout King County. Funds will be used to help purchase commercial freezers for senior activity centers in Auburn and Enumclaw.

Tojo Commissary: Based in South Park, Tojo Commissary will purchase two new hoodless electric ovens, along with the electrical upgrades needed to install the equipment. These additions will make the space more useful to small food businesses, many of whom can’t find access to commissary kitchens that are already at capacity. Additional commercial kitchen space means more non-profit and for-profit businesses can use, prepare, and distribute locally grown food.

Rehoboth Christian Development Center: Inadequate cold storage and food-handling infrastructure are limiting the ability of the Federal Way-based nonprofit from providing the culturally responsive fresh food that immigrant, refugee and underserved families need. The grant will be used to purchase and install a commercial walk-in cold storage unit, upgrade the food-handling area, coordinate food collection from local farms, purchase culturally familiar food items not typically available through food banks, and support transportation logistics.

The grants advance King County’s Local Food Initiative, a policy and funding strategy that strengthens the local food economy so more people have access to healthy, locally grown food.

Multimedia

• MAP: Grant recipients of the 2025 King County Local Food Infrastructure Grants
• TRACKS: An interactive map of environmental stewardship in King County

Resources

• Local Food Initiative

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