Vision
For everyone in Northern Illinois to have the food they need to thrive.
Mission
To provide nutritious food and resources for our neighbors, with dignity, equity and convenience, through partnerships and innovation.
Introduction
When we began our planning process in late 2019, Northern Illinois Food Bank–in partnership with our network of 900 agencies and feeding programs–was distributing a notable 69 million meals, meeting the
meal gap in 91% of our communities.
We are grateful to all our donors, volunteers and network who joined us in an intensive five-year journey to distribute meals equitably across our 13 counties.
However, in recent years it became evident that we were not reaching all our neighbors who needed
help. These included neighbors unaware of our network and programs, those uncomfortable accessing help, neighbors whose work schedules conflicted with pantry hours, and those living in areas with limited resources.
Throughout our initial planning conversations, leaders and stakeholders expressed a commitment to
identify innovative, neighbor-centric solutions to assist every person and family who may be struggling
to have enough food. Reaching all our neighbors with new approaches and providing access to
the food they need and desire, emerged as the cornerstone of this plan.
With the onset of 2020 came an unprecedented health and economic crisis. This year propelled us to create a road map to meet a quickly rising demand for food, design a better experience for neighbors and prioritize solutions for communities disproportionately impacted by hunger. Through this plan we take responsibility to serve more neighbors, especially those neighbors we often miss.
What do our neighbors need and want?
Pathways
Strategic Initiatives FY21-23
How we’ll measure our progress
