The Federation of Virginia Food Banks is proud to share our 2025 Impact Report, highlighting how Virginia’s food banks, partners, and supporters are working together to ensure every neighbor has access to nutritious food.
Across the Commonwealth, hunger remains a serious challenge. In 2025, more than one million Virginians — about 1 in 8 residents — experienced food insecurity, as families faced persistently high food and household costs. Yet communities across Virginia continue to respond with compassion, innovation, and collaboration.
Despite these challenges, Virginia’s network of food banks and community organizations continues to respond with compassion, innovation, and collaboration. The 2025 Impact Report shows how partnerships across the state are helping ensure that neighbors have access to the food they need to live healthy, productive lives.
Strengthening Hunger Relief Across Virginia
Virginia’s food banks serve as the backbone of the state’s hunger relief network, working with local food pantries, schools, healthcare providers, farmers, and volunteers to expand access to nutritious food.
In 2025, Virginia’s food banks and their partners made a significant impact:
- 734,000 neighbors served
- 172 million pounds of food distributed
- 63 million pounds of fruits and vegetables provided (enough to fill about 1,575 tractor-trailers that would stretch more than 20 miles!)
- 1,800+ partner pantries and community distribution sites supported
- $5 million in grants invested in food access programs
- Partnerships with 60+ local farmers and growers
Behind every number in this report is a person: a parent stretching their grocery budget, a senior choosing between medication and meals, a child who needs healthy food to grow and learn.
Connecting Food and Health
Food insecurity is closely linked to health outcomes. Ensuring that neighbors have access not just to food, but to nutritious and culturally appropriate food, remains a key focus for Virginia’s food banks. Virginia’s food banks continue to expand partnerships between healthcare providers and hunger relief programs through Food is Medicine initiatives.
Through the Healthy Pantry Initiative, food pantries across the state are working to increase access to healthier options while improving the pantry experience for the people they serve. Participating pantries receive free training and opportunities for micro-grants that help expand fresh food offerings, improve pantry layouts, and support nutrition-focused programming.
In 2025, pantries participating in the micro-grant initiative increased their distribution of fresh fruits and vegetables by an average of 30 percent, helping families access healthier food options closer to home.
Across the Commonwealth, 98 Food Pharmacies now operate in partnership with healthcare systems. Food Pharmacies meet patients where they are, offering healthy groceries and nutrition education to patients experiencing food insecurity at the clinic or through a home healthcare worker.
These programs serve approximately 4,600 patients each month, and 4 out of 5 participants reported improved health outcomes.
For patients managing chronic illness or undergoing medical treatment, access to healthy food can make a meaningful difference in their ability to heal and maintain their health.
Working Toward Long-Term Solutions
While emergency food distribution remains essential, the Federation of Virginia Food Banks also works to address the root causes of hunger through advocacy and policy partnerships.
By collaborating with policymakers, healthcare leaders, and community organizations, the Federation supports efforts to strengthen nutrition programs, protect federal food assistance, and expand innovative solutions that improve food access statewide.
In 2026, these efforts will help ensure that hunger relief programs can meet both immediate needs and long-term challenges facing Virginia families.