Values & Approach

Our Values

Nutrition

Food is a basic right for all individuals.

Local

Everyone deserves access to healthy food, where they live, that they can get to.

Equity

Everyone deserves access to foods that are familiar to them and fit their cultural and dietary needs.

Community Engagement

Working collaboratively with other community organizations drives our mutual success.

Advocates at the capitol for Hunger Day on the Hill

Systems Change

Operating in a way that supports equity, sustainability and fairness to all builds stronger communities.

Grounded in our values…

We source, grow, and distribute

nutritious & culturally relevant foods

We expand access to and advance policies that support

accessible and affordable food and sustainable food production

so all Minnesotans can thrive

in a just and equitable food system

Our Strategic Goals

The Food Group is working across the food system to expand access to nutritious food and build a stronger food system for everyone. We collaborated with program participants, farmers, and partners to develop a 3–goal plan for statewide change.

Goal 1

The Food Group actively engages in policy & advocacy to influence food systems change.

Goal 2

The Food Group deepens & diversifies our partnerships to collectively advance food justice.

Goal 3

Community voice and user input inform all levels of The Food Group.

A farmer in The Food Group's farmed education program tends to crops in their independent plot at Big River Farms

Our Equity Statement

Since 2005, The Food Group has offered culturally specific foods and resources to build cultural responsiveness. Ending hunger requires more than providing culturally appropriate foods and we are committed to addressing race and class inequity in the food system.

Equity is fundamental to our mission to fight hunger and nourish our community. Where we live, how much money we make, or the color of our skin currently influences access to healthy and culturally appropriate foods. We must address the roots of these inequities so everyone in our community has the opportunity to live their best life. We believe in working with our community and organizations to improve food access and make systemic changes in hunger relief. To do so, we must include equity in all aspects of our work. We invite individuals from different abilities, ethnicities, genders, races, religions, sexual orientations, and socioeconomic backgrounds to take part in and shape our work.

The Food Group Equity Statement

A shopper holds up a lemon in front of the Twin Cities Mobile Market bus

Our Healthy Foods Policy

The Food Group believes that food, especially nutritious and fresh food, is an essential right. Healthy foods are an important part of a diet that reduces the risk of disease. Our Healthy Foods Policy is focused on expanding access to nutritious foods and centering nutrition as a core value across all programs including how we source food.

View Our Healthy Foods Policy