Good Food Collective Received $100,000 Grant

The funding supports a regional effort to expand access to healthy meals for students in rural Colorado schools.

Updated on Oct. 13, 2026 in Healthy Food

Screen-print poster illustration of a wooden crate filled with vegetables on a windowsill, with Colorado mountains visible in the background. — The Good Food Collective received a $100,000 grant from the Newman's Own Foundation to expand healthy school meal access in rural Colorado. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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The Good Food Collective has secured a $100,000 grant from the Newman's Own Foundation to bolster childhood nutrition efforts. The award is part of the 2026 Food Justice for Kids Prize, which distributed $1.4 million across 14 organizations.

Why it matters

The grant allows the organization to expand access to Colorado's Healthy School Meals for All program within rural school districts. This initiative aims to address significant disparities where childhood food insecurity averages 18.3% in its service area and reaches 85% in tribal communities.

The Good Food Collective received $100,000 in funding for a two-year project. This initiative targets outreach to over 10,000 students by 2027.

The players

Good Food Collective

This organization focuses on improving food access and nutrition education for students in Southwest Colorado.

Newman's Own Foundation

The foundation manages the Food Justice for Kids Prize, which supports non-profits working to reduce childhood food insecurity.

The details

The organization plans to use the funds to implement the Rural School Food Bridge model. This program works to connect rural school districts with the state universal free meals initiative to improve food access for students.

2024: The inaugural Food Justice for Kids Prize was awarded.
2026: The 2026 Food Justice for Kids Prize was awarded.
Next two years: The duration of the grant funding for recipient organizations.
2027: The year the collective projects reaching 10,000 students.

Culture Shift

This effort aligns with the state's transition toward universal school nutrition access by providing the logistics needed to reach underserved rural areas. It marks a push to bridge the gap between policy intent and on-the-ground implementation in historically food-insecure communities.

Rural families in the five-county service area may see increased availability of free school meals as the district-level infrastructure improves. Residents can expect the organization to ramp up operations in rural schools over the next two years to meet the target of 10,000 students reached.

The takeaway

Securing long-term funding allows community organizations to build the infrastructure necessary to participate in state-wide nutritional programs. Residents interested in food access can support these school-based programs by contacting their local district to confirm participation in the state's meal initiative.