(Mooresville, NC — May 2, 2025) FOODiversity, a North Carolina-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit – known for its collaborative work with regional food pantries, schools, and health organizations – is expanding its impact beyond N.C. to serve communities across state lines. FOODiversity and Second Harvest Food Bank of East Tennessee have combined efforts in a strategic partnership to increase access to allergen-friendly and gluten-free foods in 18 Tennessee counties.

FOODiversity provides guidance and resources to enhance food banks and pantries, resulting in increased support for people with dietary restrictions, such as food allergies, celiac disease and food intolerances. Second Harvest Food Bank of East Tennessee estimates that more than 202,500 people in its 18-county region are currently experiencing food insecurity, and statistics indicate that 1 in 4 people are impacted by dietary restrictions.

The Allergy-Friendly Pantry Initiative

Wendy Gordon Pake, Executive Director of FOODiversity, and Allison Stokoe, Nutrition Educator at Second Harvest, met to discuss the food bank’s Allergy-Friendly Pantry Initiative (AFPI), which aims to make programming more accessible to people with dietary restrictions.

Initial FOODiversity support to Second Harvest included:

• General guidelines about storing, displaying, and distributing allergen-friendly products
• A site visit to a N.C. Second Harvest Food Bank pantry partner, also a FOODiversity client, to learn about the use of client intake data and process improvements to better distribute the more costly allergen-friendly products
• Introductions to food sourcing options who specialize in allergen-friendly products
• FOODiversity’s Food Pantry & Food Bank Assessment Tools

Barriers to Allergen-friendly and Gluten-free Foods

A 2024 study shed light on how food pantries across the U.S. often struggle to tailor their programming to meet the needs of individuals with dietary restrictions. Researchers found that many food pantries do not inquire about dietary restrictions, a critical step in the intake process, often due to staffing, inventory, and funding challenges. (Miller et al., 2024). Determined to create change in these statistics, Stokoe shared about the AFPI’s intentional approach to “create a sustainable program that meets the needs of the neighbors [we] serve.”

Identifying the Needs

Second Harvest’s AFPI recently launched a neighbor-facing survey to identify the need for allergen-friendly or gluten-free food. The AFPI survey, a customized version of FOODiversity’s Food Pantry Patron Questionnaire, aims to 1) identify what types of dietary restrictions are prevalent regionally and 2) gather data on the overlap between dietary restrictions and food insecurity in the region.

As responses from the community pour in, FOODiversity and Second Harvest look forward to the impact the findings will have on food access across East Tennessee, and beyond. Elaine Streno, Executive Director of Second Harvest Food Bank of East Tennessee said, “Our partnership with FOODiversity… will help us better understand the needs of East Tennesseans. We are grateful for this opportunity to better serve our neighbors experiencing food insecurity.”

Creating Sustainable Solutions for Food Access

To launch this effort with meaningful, systemic impact, FOODiversity is committed to bringing key stakeholders together to create a unified and coordinated approach. “This partnership with Second Harvest, and the valuable findings from the AFPI research, will strengthen our future collaborations with organizations who are driven to end hunger,” says Pake.

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About FOODiversity

Founded in 2020, FOODiversity is headquartered in Mooresville, NC, and serves people across the U.S. The 501(c)(3) nonprofit was established to lessen the burden of food insecurity for individuals and families with food allergies, including alpha gal syndrome, celiac disease, or food intolerances. FOODiversity’s mission is to prevent hunger, medical emergencies, and hospitalizations by raising awareness, providing educational support, and increasing access.

About Second Harvest Food Bank of East Tennessee

Second Harvest Food Bank of East Tennessee, a Partner Food Bank of Feeding America, has worked to compassionately feed East Tennesseans experiencing hunger since 1982. Last year, Second Harvest distributed more than 26.3 million pounds of food across an 18-county service area through eight hunger-relief programs and 670+ community partners.

References

Miller ME, Virkud Y, Rodriguez GM, Pake WG. The availability of allergen-friendly food for college students experiencing food insecurity: exploring current campus practices. Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. 2024;133(5):585-591.e6.

Photo courtesy of Second Harvest Food Bank of East Tennessee