The Laurie M. Tisch Center for Food, Education & Policy, in collaboration with the Hunter College NYC Food Policy Center and the CUNY Urban Food Policy Institute, has joined forces to assess New York City's food system response to COVID-19 over the next 18 months. 

New York Food 20/20: Vision, Research, and Recommendations During COVID-19 and Beyond is the first independent assessment of COVID-19's impact on the New York City food system during the first six months of the crisis, including its economic and health effects. The report discusses early steps the City took to respond to COVID-19-related changes and offers concrete actions that public officials, civil society groups, and advocates can take to minimize harms and maximize opportunities in the future. 

Key Findings

• Food-related policies and programs were not designed to deal with challenges of the scale COVID-19 created.
• The pandemic highlighted long standing tensions between the City’s actions to ensure that NYC residents have enough to eat and that they have the right foods to eat well.
• Lack of coordination and communication about available food resources slowed and stymied food distribution efforts to New Yorkers in need.
• Food insecurity remains a persistent problem and will continue to worsen as long as the pandemic continues. Specific populations remain particularly vulnerable: immigrants, small food business owners, food workers, and children in households below the federal poverty level who rely on schools for the bulk of their meals.

As NYC moves into the next phase of the COVID-19 crisis, our city has the opportunity to reimagine NYC’s food policies and programs to ensure that we emerge with a stronger, healthier, more just, and sustainable food system.

View the report here.

_{Funding for this report was provided by Community Food Funders, North Star Fund (and for all their coordination); the Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund; Lily Auchincloss Foundation; Merck Family Fund; New York State Health Foundation; Shachar Foundation; and the Pierre and Tana Matisse Foundation.}