Expanding Collective Purchasing Capacity Across New York City Food Pantries

Grantee Name

West Side Center for Community Life, Inc. (dba West Side Campaign Against Hunger)

Funding Area

Healthy Food, Healthy Lives

Publication Date

February 2026

Grant Amount

$200,000

Grant Date:

July 2024

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Inflation, rising rents, and other factors have led to high rates of food insecurity in New York City and resulted in more demand from the emergency food system of food banks and pantries. Food banks are regional entities that source and aggregate food, while food pantries are community-based sites that provide people in need with free food. Food banks receive funding from the government to purchase food on behalf of pantries. At the West Side Campaign Against Hunger (WSCAH), demand for food has increased substantially, with many clients asking for more fresh produce and products from their countries of origin. In 2018, NYHealth awarded WSCAH a grant to launch a collective purchasing program among emergency food providers. The successful pilot program evolved into an alliance of eight of the largest emergency food providers in the City, called the Roundtable, which increases food pantries’ ability to purchase healthy, fresh foods at affordable prices.

In 2024, NYHealth awarded WSCAH a grant to enable more food pantries across New York City to procure competitively priced, fresh, healthy, culturally relevant foods for clients. Under this grant, WSCAH expanded the availability of its collective purchasing program to more emergency food programs across New York City.

Outcomes and Lessons Learned

Built an AI-powered data scraping system that converts paper and PDF invoices into machine-readable data, addressing a major operational gap for frontline providers.
Developed GRAIL, a web-based strategic purchasing tool, to automatically extract and analyze data from invoices for emergency food providers.
Demonstrated substantial time savings, with GRAIL processing up to 10 months of invoices in minutes, reducing tasks that previously required hours of staff time.
Established data protections and onboarding processes for pilot users, positioning the tool for broader testing and future public launch.
Advanced a coordinated advocacy strategy, with pantry members of the Roundtable testifying at multiple hearings, and educated elected officials on the importance of emergency food funding, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and school meals.
Increased the Roundtable’s visibility and influence, leading to deeper engagement with government leaders, major funders, and philanthropic working groups.

The project underscored both the promise and complexity of building new technology for frontline food systems. Developing a tool without clear precedent required more time and iteration than initially anticipated, particularly to address inconsistent invoice formats and varying legibility common across vendors. These delays highlighted the importance of longer development timelines and earlier investment in technical expertise. At the same time, pilot testing confirmed the tool’s strong potential to reduce administrative burden and free staff capacity for strategic decision-making.

On the advocacy side, the work reinforced that progress often comes through sustained, collective engagement rather than immediate wins. While policy gains were uneven during a volatile political environment, consistent participation in hearings, meetings, and public communications preserved key resources and strengthened long-term relationships. Together, these lessons positioned the Roundtable to roll out GRAIL to all pantry partners, deepen its policy impact, and scale both efforts more effectively moving forward.

Co-Funding and Additional Funds Leveraged: New York Community Trust ($100,000), Applebaum Foundation ($150,000), and Robin Hood Foundation ($260,000).

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