USDA awards $200K to create Saginaw Food Club

WASHINGTON (WNEM) - The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is awarding the Saginaw Community Foundation $280,542 through the National Institute of Food and Agriculture’s Community Food Projects Competitive Grant Program to create the Saginaw Food Club.

The Saginaw Food Club will act as a grocery store and operate on a nonprofit membership model, providing healthy food in an area that had previously been a food desert. It will also have a community kitchen to support food related businesses and hold nutrition programs, said U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow.

“The Saginaw Food Club will help create innovative partnerships in the local food system to provide affordable, healthy food for Michigan families who need it the most,” Stabenow said.

Every person is in need of good nutrition for their health, said Tina Swanton, Saginaw Community Food Club and Kitchen board president.

“This can only be done through healthy food access. The Saginaw Community Food Club and Kitchen (Food Club) will not only give people the ability to access healthy foods but also provide them choice while shopping, and with a price system all can afford,” Swanton said.

More information about the National Institute of Food and Agriculture grant program can be found on their website.