Danbury’s Food Farmacy offers distinctive approach to fighting malnutrition

A unique stratgegy to tackling the health problems associated with malnutrition is being pursued in downtown Danbury at the Connecticut Institute for Communities’ (CIFC) Community Center.

Slightly more than $1 million in federal funds is being granted to United Way of Western Connecticut used to launch the Greater Danbury Food Farmacy in partnership with Nuvance Health.
The “Food Farmacy”will allow doctors to prescribe healthy food to patients, which they will be able to acquire at the facility that will be constructed adjacent to the CFIC’s Gov. Dannel P. Malloy Hall, which contains the community center’s pool and athletic facilities. The funding will also allow 100 food-insecure patients to be prescribed healthy food by health care providers for a 9-month period.

“This grant allows us to continue pushing the boundaries of what’s possible by launching this Food as Medicine Food Pharmacy Program,”said Isabel Almeda, the president of United Way of Western Connecticut. “This program will provide support for those individuals who are diagnosed with hypertension and who screen positive for food insecurity. Individuals identified will receive a prescription to redeem at the food pharmacy. Once enrolled, patients will see a dietician. They’ll have the opportunity to shop in a grocery style food pantry for healthy foods”Twice a month, those with a prescription will be able to shop at the Food Farmacy. They will also be able to spend up to $10 a week in United Way’s Healthy Savings benefits on fresh produce from area retailers. Additionally, those patients will have access to support staff including a social worker, a dietician, and access to monthly cooking demonstrations. The pantry itself will also help alleviate a food desert in downtown Danbury where few healthy food options are present at affordable prices.

“This grant will not only enable us to address the critical challenges that we face, such as food insecurity and health disparities, but will also empower us to foster a culture of innovation and collaboration here in Danbury,”Almeda added. “We’re excited at the possibilities that lie ahead and we invite all members of our community to join in this journey.”At a recent ceremony launching the Food Farmacy, U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal noted that Danbury is one of the most diverse cities in Connecticut and home to “so many different backgrounds, nationalities, cultures, heritages, different ways of eating, different ways of celebrating holidays. But we all have in common the need for good nutrition. It is vital not only to enjoying life but being productive in life, particularly for our children.”Blumenthal expressed hope that both the United Way and programs such as the Food Farmacy could see expansion in the near future, including to other parts of the state such as his hometown of Stamford. He underlined the importance of reducing food waste, and that medically tailored meals which take into account the specific nutritional needs of individuals could lead the way forward for addressing hunger.

“I knew that the partnership was really confident of the merits of this program when I got an application for $1,050,000,”said U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy, who joined Blumenthal at the ceremony, noting the $50,000 was earmarked specifically to hire the program’s social worker.

“Normally you need a million dollars you’ll submit an application for $900,000, $990,000, right up to the million-dollar mark. But they needed that $50,000 to make this program work and they weren’t shy about asking for it,”said Murphy.

“Chronic disease accounts for 80% of the American healthcare spend, 20% of the U.S. GDP, one in four dollars that we spend in the Medicare program is dedicated just to diabetes,”Murphy added, expressing hope that the Food Farmacy might have economic as well as health benefits. He called the application “a no brainer,”and said that he hopes that the program will blaze a path towards addressing both chronic disease and hunger while saving taxpayers money.

Dr. Brenda Ayers, the medical director for health equity at Nuvance Health, reminded the event’s audience of the scale of the problem the Food Farmacy is addressing.
“In our country, food insecurity or the condition of not having consistent access to nutritious food to meet basic needs affect about 34 million people every single day,”Ayers said. “This means that everyday people across our country and right here in Danbury have to choose between paying their rent or paying an electric bill, or putting gas in their car, or buying their medicine.”Cheap and filling food that may not be nutritious often becomes the only thing those families are capable of putting on the table, according to Ayers, particularly when time also becomes a factor.

“It stands to reason that if the foods we eat can be a big part of the root cause of some of these illnesses, they can also be a big part of the solution, and even part of the prevention of diseases. Healthy, nutritious food becomes the intervention that sits at the intersection of nutrition and healthcare,”said Ayers.