How the Food Bank for Central and Northeast Missouri will use major donation from Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield

Charles Dunlap, Columbia Daily Tribune
·3 min read
John Van Wart, director of sales for Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, and Lindsay Lopez, president and CEO of the Food Bank for Central and Northeast Missouri, announce a partnershp of the two organizations Thursday, including $360,000 in financial support from Anthem.
John Van Wart, director of sales for Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, and Lindsay Lopez, president and CEO of the Food Bank for Central and Northeast Missouri, announce a partnershp of the two organizations Thursday, including $360,000 in financial support from Anthem.

Food Bank for Central and Northeast Missouri programs were bolstered Thursday through a financial partnership with Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield.

The Food Bank has received $120,000 for the next three years, or $360,000 total in support of food purchases and to aid upgrades to the Food Bank's Central Pantry, which is expected to open at its new location on Business Loop 70 West in the fall.

The Food Bank also has sought a commitment from Boone County to provide American Rescue Plan Act funds toward the facility upgrades.

This includes upgrading the building layout with a retail space styled as an open plan grocery store giving clients the choice of what they want.

More: Central Pantry for Food Bank of Central and Northeast Missouri finds new home

An exterior rendering of the new Central Pantry on Business Loop 70 West.
An exterior rendering of the new Central Pantry on Business Loop 70 West.

The facility provides additional cold storage and warehouse space for Central Pantry and the Food Bank. There also is a demonstration kitchen, community rooms for meetings, educational opportunities, other resource partners and a health clinic partnership with Compass Health in the building plans.

"When you need access to food, you need access to all kinds of other resources," said Lindsay Lopez, Food Bank president and CEO. "... It all comes full circle. The commitment (Anthem) has made to the Food Bank is going to help support this new facility, which supports the entire service area we cover, one-third of the state of Missouri."

The Food Bank is akin to a wholesaler for partner agencies and other organizations that provide meals and food, such Central Pantry, along with other pantries and soup kitchens in Columbia, Boone County and the Food Bank's region.

More: Food Bank for Central & Northeast Missouri raises awareness with Hunger Action Day

Lindsay Lopez, Food Bank For Central and Northeast Missouri president and CEO, displays plans Thursday of how the new Central Pantry at its Business Loop 70 West address will be laid out once construction finishes in the fall. She was providing a tour to staff of Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield in relation to the two organization's partnership for the next three years.

"We serve about 100,000 people per month on average (in our region), and we serve about 10,000 people per month just out of the Central Pantry location," said Lindsay Lopez, Food Bank president and CEO.

This equates to providing about 30 million pounds or 25 million meals of food to all the partner agencies within the Food Bank's region per year. That number continues to grow, Lopez said.

The Food Bank increased the number of clients it serves by 30% in 2022, when compared to 2021, she said. The $360,000 partnership with Anthem will help the Food Bank provide 1.4 million meals.

"We are spending about three times more to purchase food than we did pre-pandemic and we know our neighbors are experiencing those same price increases, too," Lopez said, adding they face additional challenges, such as health concerns of diabetes, high blood pressure or high cholesterol and many go without insurance. "Anthem's pledge ... will move the needle in our shared service area to address the intersection of food insecurity, nutrition and health."

Like the Food Bank, Anthem is in the business of helping people and serving communities, said John Van Wart, director of sales.

Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Director of Sales John Van Wart and Food Bank for Central and Northeast Missouri President and CEO Lindsay Lopez, holding the scissors, prepare to cut the ribbon Thursday on a $360,000 partnership of the two organizations.
Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Director of Sales John Van Wart and Food Bank for Central and Northeast Missouri President and CEO Lindsay Lopez, holding the scissors, prepare to cut the ribbon Thursday on a $360,000 partnership of the two organizations.

"At Anthem we know food insecurity is one of the most critical unmet needs in the country," he said. "We believe that health is medicine and people who have access to better health care and nutrition are more likely to be healthier.

"We continue to focus on programs that help prevent the onset of diet-related health conditions."

The partnership's importance has grown as certain Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and other benefits are reduced post pandemic, Van Wart added.

"It is going to be tough the next 13 months or so. Our goal is to create greater access to healthy and nutritious food by improving affordable healthy food options among food insecure populations," he said. "We are in the business of helping people and serving our communities."

Charles Dunlap covers local government, community stories and other general subjects for the Tribune. You can reach him at cdunlap@columbiatribune.com or @CD_CDT on Twitter. Subscribe to support vital local journalism.

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: Anthem makes major donation to Food Bank for Central and Northeast MO