Just Food of Douglas County, KS

What Just Food of Douglas County, KS does

Just Food of Douglas County, KS is a nonprofit food bank and pantry organization founded in 2009 and headquartered at 1000 E. 11th Street in Lawrence, Kansas. The organization operates as the designated food bank of Douglas County, with a mission to end food insecurity by increasing access to healthy foods, reducing barriers to health and well-being, and cultivating self-sufficiency. It serves a broad cross-section of Douglas County residents facing food insecurity, including families, seniors, K-12 students in USD 497, university students and staff at the University of Kansas and Haskell Indian Nations University, and homebound individuals. Operations are run by a small staff of approximately 10 employees under Executive Director Aundrea Walker.

The organization's service architecture is an integrated multi-channel distribution network rather than a technology product. Core distribution channels include the main walk-in pantry, the mobile Cruising Cupboard serving rural food deserts, 15 Classroom Cupboards in USD 497 schools, Campus Cupboards at KU and Haskell, the Care Cupboard partnership with Heartland Community Health Center, and a delivery program for homebound clients. Supporting programs include Just Cook (cooking classes), Just Grow (gardening classes), Just Basics (diaper and basic-needs assistance), Chop Shop (food recovery into ready-to-eat meals), Pots & Pantry, and federal nutrition programs CSFP and TEFAP. In 2023 the Chop Shop program recovered 572,513 pounds of food, and the organization served approximately 22,000 Douglas County residents in 2020.

The business model is donation- and grant-funded, with services provided free of charge to clients. Revenue streams include individual and corporate donations, merchandise sales, fundraising events (annual gala, The Fond Dinner Series launched in 2025), in-kind food recovery from restaurants and retailers, and federal food commodities supplied at no cost through TEFAP via regional partner Harvesters (a Feeding America affiliate). The organization is governed by a board of directors with no parent company or institutional investor. A material 2025 risk factor is a 30% reduction in TEFAP shipments from Harvesters, disclosed in April 2025, which directly affects the largest portion of distributed food weight.

Name

Just Food of Douglas County, KS

Legal name

Just Food of Douglas County

Website

https://justfoodks.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Just Food of Douglas County is a nonprofit food bank and pantry founded in 2009 in Lawrence, Kansas, serving food-insecure residents through a main pantry, mobile distribution, school and university cupboards, and federal nutrition programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Food Assistance Services

NAICS

Community Food Services (62421), Community Food Services (624210)

SIC

Wholesale-Groceries, General Line (5141)

akta.pro primary industry

Food Assistance & Food Banks (BPAGAEAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Meal Program Compliance & Administration (NSLP/SBP, Reimbursements) (EDAEAEAC), School Feeding & Child Nutrition Programs (BPADAJAD)

Keywords

• Food pantry services
• Food bank
• Mobile food distribution
• Food recovery program
• Nutrition assistance

Headquarters

HQ city

Lawrence

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Fundraising: Just Food relies on charitable donations from individuals and organizations, including merchandise sales, event fundraising (galas, The Fond Dinner Series), and direct monetary contributions.
2. Federal Food Assistance (TEFAP): The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) provides federal food commodities to Just Food at no cost. On average, TEFAP accounts for 6,000-8,000 pounds of food distributed monthly.
3. Food Recovery and Redistribution: The Chop Shop program recovers food that would otherwise be wasted and repurposes it into ready-to-eat meals, recovering 572,513 pounds of food annually.
4. Merchandise Sales: The organization sells branded merchandise through its website to generate supplementary revenue.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Just Food of Douglas County is a nonprofit food bank and food pantry serving Lawrence and Douglas County, Kansas. It provides free supplemental food assistance to residents facing food insecurity through a walk-in main pantry, mobile distribution (Cruising Cupboard), school and university satellite cupboards, a healthcare partner pantry, a delivery program for homebound individuals, and supporting programs in food recovery, cooking and gardening education, and basic needs (diapers).

Product overview

Just Food of Douglas County is a food bank and food pantry organization serving the Lawrence, KS area. The organization operates as a single integrated service network rather than a platform-plus-modules architecture. Core services include the Main Pantry, mobile Cruising Cupboard, Care Cupboard partnership, Campus Cupboards, Classroom Cupboards (15 schools), and Delivery Program. Supporting programs include Just Grow gardening classes, Just Basics diaper assistance, Just Cook cooking classes, Chop Shop food recovery, Pots & Pantry, and CSFP & TEFAP federal nutrition programs. The organization served 22,000 Douglas County residents in 2020, operates 30+ partner agencies, and distributed 572,513 pounds of food through its recovery program in 2023.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Cruising Cupboard: Mobile food pantry providing access to food in rural areas and food deserts of Douglas County
• Just Grow
• Just Cook
• Chop Shop
• Just Basics
• Care Cupboard
• Pots & Pantry

Products and services

• Main Pantry Walk-in food pantry at the main location (1000 E. 11th St., Lawrence, KS) where residents enroll and shop weekly using a point system to access supplemental groceries. Open Tuesday and Thursday 9am-6pm and Wednesday and Friday 9am-3pm. Targets food-insecure individuals and families in Douglas County.
• Cruising Cupboard (Mobile Pantry) Mobile food pantry that brings supplemental groceries to rural areas and food deserts across Douglas County at scheduled stops. Open to existing Just Food shoppers and allows new clients to enroll on-site.
• Care Cupboard Satellite pantry operated with Heartland Community Health Center at 1312 W 6th St., Lawrence, KS, providing healthy food access to community members facing food-related health concerns. Hours: Monday-Thursday 9am-5pm.
• Campus Cupboards Satellite food cupboards serving students, faculty, and staff at Kansas University (Kansas Union Level 4) and Haskell Indian Nations University (Haskell LIGHT).
• Classroom Cupboards 15 in-school food pantries operating across USD 497 schools, stocked with food for students and their families. Access is coordinated through the school main office.
• Delivery Program Food delivery service for individuals with disabilities, chronic illness, or who are homebound, and who have no proxy pick-up option. Deliveries occur on Mondays; sign-up is required before noon Friday.
• Just Grow Gardening classes led by the Community Access Manager that teach beginning gardening techniques, square foot gardening, and vertical gardening. Classes are updated monthly.
• Just Basics Program providing diapers and other basic needs to community members, serving over 200 families monthly with diaper assistance.
• Just Cook Cooking classes teaching community members how to prepare healthy meals using ingredients commonly available at the Just Food pantry.
• Chop Shop (Food Recovery Program) Food recovery program that collects food that would otherwise be wasted and repurposes it into ready-to-eat meals. In April 2025 alone rescued and repackaged 2,512 lbs into nearly 2,000 portions; 572,513 lbs recovered in 2023.
• Pots & Pantry Program supporting community food access through meal preparation resources and pantry support.
• CSFP & TEFAP The Commodity Supplemental Food Program and The Emergency Food Assistance Program — federal nutrition programs that provide USDA commodities to low-income households (CSFP) and to households in need (TEFAP) through the food bank network.

Quantifiable outcome

• Served 22,000 Douglas County residents in 2020; 4,000 students through 15 school pantries; 66% increase in senior access
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• 715 RestaurantminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Host venue for The Fond Dinner Series, showcasing Douglas County chefs with four-course dinners. First event March 6, 2025 featuring Chef Kelly Conwell.
• The Eldridge HotelminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2024Community partner since 2024. Donated 785 pounds of leftover food to be repacked into ready-to-eat meals at The Chop Shop food recovery program.
• Free State BreweryminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2023Provided 5-star meal for the 2023 Game Gala Fundraiser event.
• Starbucks (23rd Street, Lawrence)minorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2019Since 2019, donated 1,545 pounds of ready-to-eat meals (sandwiches, pastries, yogurts, bagels) in the past year and 484 pounds so far this year. Hosts food drives and serves as community barrel drop-off point.
• HarvesterscoreOthersRegional Feeding America partner that supplies TEFAP food commodities to Just Food. Just Food receives 6,000-8,000 pounds of food monthly from this partnership. In April 2025, Harvesters notified Just Food of a 30% reduction in TEFAP shipments.
• Heartland Community Health CentercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to operate the Care Cupboard, serving community members facing health concerns to access healthy food for combating food-related illnesses. Located at 1312 W 6th St. with Monday-Thursday 9am-5pm hours.
• Kansas Union (Kansas University)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorLocation of KU Campus Cupboard satellite food pantry on Level 4, serving KU students, faculty, and staff.
• Haskell LIGHT (Haskell Indian Nations University)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorLocation of Haskell Campus Cupboard satellite food pantry serving Haskell students and community.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• Food Forward: Food recovery nonprofit that gleans surplus produce and redistributes to communities. Directly comparable to Just Food's Chop Shop program in mission and operational model, though geographically distinct.

Broad incumbents

• Midwest Food Bank: Multi-state food bank with disaster relief, food recovery, and pantry support programs. Comparable mission and food-recovery operations (analogous to Just Food's Chop Shop) though operating at broader regional scale.
• Feeding America: National umbrella network of 200+ food banks including Harvesters. Operates at vastly greater scale and provides the TEFAP/commodity supply chain that flows down to Just Food; relevant as the dominant incumbent in the same food-assistance category.
• Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana: Regional Feeding America affiliate distributing food through pantries and partner agencies. Comparable multi-channel distribution model though operating at greater scale across multiple counties.

Regional players

• St. Louis Area Foodbank: Regional food bank serving the bi-state Missouri area. Comparable in food distribution, mobile pantry, and partner-agency network model, though serving a much larger urban geography.
• Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona: Regional food bank operating pantries, mobile distributions, and food recovery programs. Comparable in mission and integrated service model though focused on a different region of the U.S.
• Second Harvest Community Food Bank: Regional food bank serving west-central Missouri. Operates the same food-bank/pantry model with mobile distributions and partner agency networks, comparable in structure though serving a different geographic territory.

Direct peers

• Kansas Food Bank: Statewide Kansas food bank providing food distribution and nutrition programs across multiple counties. Directly comparable as a regional food bank serving low-income households through pantries and partner agencies.
• Harvesters – The Community Food Network: Regional Feeding America food bank serving Kansas and western Missouri. Direct upstream supplier of TEFAP commodities to Just Food and a peer in the same regional food-bank ecosystem with comparable mission and programs.
• Food Bank of Larimer County: County-level food bank in Colorado providing pantry, mobile, and food-recovery programs. Closely comparable to Just Food in scale, single-county focus, and multi-program structure.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/justfoodkansas
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCuZQeeROHizKOBS7ksktVDQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/justfoodks
• Instagraminstagram.com/justfoodkansas
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/just-food-of-douglas-county-ks

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Just Food of Douglas County, KS