Maryland Emergency Food Program (MEFP)

The Emergency Food Program is a state-run program and provides food to different organizations and food vendors who buy food for the underprivileged and needy people in the state of Maryland. The program does not provide food itself to individuals or families but provides funding to food providers to do so. The program operated in more than 24 counties in the state of Maryland and provides food to needy households. The MEFP program provides food to food pantries, food shelters, food banks, and organizations that provide emergency food for free. The program aims to remove hunger by providing food to low-income people and people who cannot afoot food.

The MEFP is a part of The Emergency Food Assistance Program that is an initiation of the federal government. The TEFAP program provides funds and food to different food providing non-profit organizations that serve the needy households in different states.

The main aim of the Maryland Emergency Food Program (MEFP) is to provide the underprivileged families living on a fixed budget with an opportunity to improve their food quality. It helps to get valuable nutrition by purchasing food that is nutritious for health. This leads them to live a healthy and self-sufficient lifestyle subsequently increasing the quality of life of the people in the state of Illinois.

The maximum amount of funds provided to a food provider in the first year is about $2000. However, the amount of funding may change each due depending on the availability of funds and other factors which include the number of underprivileged families, the unemployment rates in the state, and the overall size of the population. To keep you updated with the current guidelines of the MEFP program kindly visit the Department of Human Services office.

Several local organizations partner with the Maryland Emergency Food Program that helps distribute food to low-income and needy people in the state. Each month, there is a certain amount of fund that is allocated to these organizations from the Emergency Food Assistance Program. Some of the organizations are Soup Kitchen across the state, Food Pantries, Pantry on the Go sites, and Emergency Shelters. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) makes sure that the food this is provided to the needy is healthy and nutritious. The types of food provided to the food pantries by the MEFP program include vegetables, healthy juices, meal and fish, beans (dried or canned), milk, rice, cereals, soups, pasta products, and other nutrient-rich food.

The food provider must fulfill certain criteria to be eligible to receive funding for the food from the Maryland Emergency Food Program. The food provider should be a non-profit organization and should have been recognized as a non-charitable organization b the Internal Revenue Services (IRS). The food provider should also have a non-discrimination policy and a federal tax number to be able to participate in the MEFP program. The food provider organization should have proper management and should be financially stable to participate in the MEF program. Along with that, the food provider needs to follow the MEFP program guidelines which include giving a report of how the funding was spent and submitting receipts of the food bought and the families served.

The food provider should not ask for any payment for the food provided and have a person designed to provide a complete report. The food pantries or food shelter should have posting hours so that people know which time to visit. They should create awareness about the program so that people in need can come be benefited. The environment in which food is provided to the people should be clean and the food should be stored at a suitable temperature.

If you have any queries regarding the Maryland Emergency Food Program (MEFP) kindly visit the Maryland Department of Human Services website. To download the grant application form, visit the program’s official website.

You can contact the Department of Human Services (DHS) at the following numbers: 1-800-332-6347 – 1-800-735-2258 (For TTY users)

You can also contact the MEFP program Coordinator o learn more about the program services by sending email at annette.jones-wilson@maryland.gov