The Hunger Coalition

What The Hunger Coalition does

The Hunger Coalition (legally Blaine County Hunger Coalition) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2003 by Tom Iselin in Bellevue, Idaho, to address food insecurity in Blaine County. The organization operates a portfolio of direct-service programs—including a choice-based food pantry, Community Kitchen & Café, Double Up Bucks SNAP matching at the Wood River Farmers' Market, Food for Kids (Daily Bites and Summer Food Program), the Infant Formula Initiative (40,570+ bottles distributed since 2005), community gardens, the Bloom Youth Project, volunteer programs, and food drives—delivered from its flagship Bloom Community Food Center facility and via its Bloom Truck mobile distribution unit. Since 2022, it has added a community organizing and advocacy function addressing root causes of hunger including affordable housing, healthcare access, immigration justice, and fair wages.

The Hunger Coalition is funded entirely by philanthropy, with no fee-for-service revenue. Revenue streams include one-time and recurring individual donations (with monthly donors called "Harvest Heroes"), planned giving through a Legacy Club bequest program, foundation and corporate grants (St. Luke's Wood River Foundation, Ayco Charitable Foundation, Ambrose Monell Foundation), employer matching gifts, and event sponsorships. Go-to-market is community-led: grassroots volunteer organizing, community events (FoodFest, MoleFest), email newsletters, social media, and Get Out The Vote advocacy campaigns. The organization has 20-24 staff, an independent board of directors, no parent company or subsidiaries, and serves a single geographic market (Blaine County, Idaho) where food costs rank among the top 5-8 highest in the nation, with 35% of residents food insecure.

Name

The Hunger Coalition

Legal name

Blaine County Hunger Coalition

Website

https://thehungercoalition.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Hunger Coalition is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit in Blaine County, Idaho, providing free food access programs—including a choice-based food pantry, community kitchen, food for kids, infant formula, and community gardens—via its Bloom Community Food Center, while also conducting grassroots advocacy on housing, healthcare, wages, and immigration justice.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Food Assistance Services

NAICS

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

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Food Assistance & Food Banks (BPAGAEAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Food Assistance & Safety Nets (In-Kind, Vouchers, Cash Transfers) (BPADAJAA), Child Nutrition & Meal Programs (CACFP/Snack Programs) (EDACAMAA)

Keywords

• Food assistance programs
• Community food pantry
• Hunger relief services
• Community agriculture programs
• Food security advocacy

Headquarters

HQ city

Bellevue

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. Individual Donations (One-time and Recurring): The organization accepts one-time and recurring donations from individuals via its website (secure.qgiv.com platform), mail, ACH/wire transfer, and appreciated securities. Monthly recurring donors are referred to as 'Harvest Heroes'. 91% of donors cover processing fees so that 100% of funds go directly to the Bloom Community.
2. Planned Giving / Legacy Club: The organization accepts planned gifts through bequests, charitable remainder trusts, charitable lead trusts, revocable living trusts, charitable IRA rollovers, charitable gift annuities, gifts of securities, life insurance, and retirement assets. Named Legacy Club members include Lisa Adam, Dell-Ann Benson, Tom Benson, and others who have included The Hunger Coalition in their estate plans.
3. Foundation and Corporate Grants / Sponsorships: The organization receives grants and sponsorships from foundations and corporations, including event sponsors and matching donors. Major funders include St. Luke's Wood River Foundation, Ayco Charitable Foundation, Ambrose Monell Foundation, and others listed in the Impact Report.
4. Employer Matching: The organization participates in employer matching gift programs, encouraging donors to have their employers match donations using the legal name Blaine County Hunger Coalition and EIN 72-1582755.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Hunger Coalition is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit operating the Bloom Community Food Center and an integrated portfolio of free food access programs serving Blaine County, Idaho. Its core offerings include a choice-based food pantry, free community meals and cooking classes through the Community Kitchen, the Double-Up Bucks SNAP matching program at the local farmers' market, food programs for children (Daily Bites and Summer Food Program), the Infant Formula Initiative, community gardens and greenhouses, and youth engagement through the Bloom Youth Project. All services are provided free of charge to community members.

Product overview

The Hunger Coalition is a nonprofit food assistance organization operating as a unified suite of programs and facilities, not a traditional technology product company. Its core offerings center on the Bloom Community Food Center—a flagship facility in Bellevue, Idaho—and an integrated portfolio of food access services including a choice-based Food Pantry, Community Kitchen & Café with cooking classes and free meals, the Double-Up Bucks SNAP matching program, Food for Kids programming (Daily Bites and Summer Food Program), Infant Formula Initiative, Community Gardens at multiple locations, Bloom Youth Project internships, Advocacy organizing, Volunteer programs, Food Drives, and Legacy Club planned giving. These programs are designed to address both immediate food needs and root causes of food insecurity in Blaine County.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Food Pantry A choice-based food pantry providing dignified grocery experiences with weekly food distributions on Mondays and Thursdays at Bloom Community Food Center in Bellevue, Idaho. Offers fresh produce and groceries to community members experiencing food insecurity. Includes the SmartChoice online grocery ordering system. Free of charge to Blaine County residents.
• Community Kitchen & Café A year-round community kitchen offering free weekly meals (Monday dinners 4:00pm-6:00pm and Thursday lunches 12:00pm-2:00pm), a Cooking Club on Tuesdays 5:00pm-7:00pm, cooking classes, and community event space. Supported by St. Luke's Wood River Foundation grant.
• Double-Up Bucks A SNAP matching program in collaboration with Wood River Farmers' Market that doubles the buying power of EBT/SNAP recipients, providing up to $40 in purchasing value when spending $20 on fresh fruits, vegetables, milk, meat, eggs, cheese, and honey.
• Food for Kids (Daily Bites and Summer Food Program) Programs including Daily Bites providing 6,000+ healthy snacks to schools, libraries, and camps weekly during the academic year, and a Summer Food Program offering free sack lunches with enrichment activities at multiple locations from Carey to Hailey, including Bloom Truck and Bookmobile partnerships.
• Infant Formula Initiative A program providing monthly free infant formula distribution to babies in their first year of life as a supplement to WIC. Has distributed 40,570+ bottles to date since its 2005 implementation. Partners include Knights of Columbus, The Papoose Club, and St. Luke's Wood River Medical Center.
• Community Gardens Year-round growing spaces including the Hope Garden in Hailey (June-September) and greenhouses at Bloom Community Food Center in Bellevue, offering volunteer sessions, garden education classes, and produce for community programs. Open to the public dawn to dusk.
• Bloom Youth Project A youth internship program engaging teens in farming, produce sales, and life skills development at Bloom Community Farm and The Hope Garden. Launched in 2017 as part of the organization's expansion to complement traditional food support programs.
• Advocacy Programs Grassroots organizing efforts addressing root causes of food insecurity including affordable housing, education access, healthcare, immigration justice, and living wages through voter registration, campaigns, and community partnerships. Includes text-to-action advocacy updates via "Bloom" to (208) 721-9364.
• Food Drives Community food drive programs including year-round Bloom Bin collections at local grocery stores (Albertsons, Atkinsons' Markets, Village Market), seasonal hunting donations, gleaning programs for fruit trees, and Grow A Row home garden contributions.
• Legacy Club Planned giving program allowing supporters to include The Hunger Coalition as a beneficiary in wills, estates, charitable trusts, IRAs, or life insurance for long-term sustainability. Members include Lisa Adam, Dell-Ann Benson, Tom Benson, and others.
• Volunteer Programs Volunteer opportunities across food pantry distribution, community kitchen, gardens and greenhouses, children's food programs, and food rescue from local grocery stores. Includes the Volunteer for Veggies program launched in 2017.

Quantifiable outcome

• 10,579+ people engaged in the anti-hunger movement (donors, volunteers, program participants)
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Wood River Farmers' MarketcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on Double Up Bucks program where SNAP recipients can double their buying power at the market. Fresh produce, milk, meat, eggs, cheese, and honey are available through this program.
• Hailey Public LibraryminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in Summer Food Program, providing enrichment activities for children at library locations during summer months.
• The Community LibraryminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner with Bloom Truck and Bookmobile to provide free summer meals and enrichment activities at library locations. Helps extend food access to children during summer break.
• Environmental Resource CenterminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvides enrichment activities for children at summer food program sites, adding environmental education components to meals served at Bloom locations.
• Sun Valley Museum of Art (SVMoA)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvides enrichment programming for children at Summer Food Program sites. Also supports FoodFest events with kids' activities.
• Idaho FoodbankminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional food bank providing food supply chain support, food sourcing, and coordination for the food rescue and distribution network in Blaine County.
• Blaine CountyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDonates space for Hope Garden (located next to the courthouse in Hailey). County-level partnership supporting community growing spaces.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Idaho Foodbank: Statewide regional food bank that is a named channel partner of The Hunger Coalition, supplying food through the food rescue and distribution network. Operates the same core function of food sourcing and redistribution across a larger Idaho geography.
• Community Food Centres Canada: The Canadian organization whose community food centre model directly inspired the Bloom Community Food Center design. Operates choice-based pantries, community kitchens, gardens, and advocacy programs in the same integrated way.
• Northwest Harvest: Washington State's leading hunger-relief nonprofit distributing food through a statewide network of partner agencies. Comparable mission and distribution model anchored in the Pacific Northwest.
• Food Lifeline: Seattle-based food bank distributing millions of pounds of food annually through a partner agency network, with mobile distribution and advocacy components that parallel The Hunger Coalition's model.
• MANNA FoodBank: Regional food bank serving Western North Carolina's mountain communities, a geography with similar high-cost-of-living and tourism-economy dynamics to Blaine County. Operates pantry distribution, nutrition education, and produce programs.
• Foodshare: Connecticut regional food bank combining food distribution, nutrition education, and advocacy. Mid-sized peer operating a hybrid direct-service and policy-advocacy mission similar to The Hunger Coalition.

Broad incumbents

• Food Bank of the Rockies: Regional food bank serving Colorado and Wyoming with food distribution, mobile pantries, and nutrition programs. Larger-scale incumbent operating a similar direct-service model across a broader geographic footprint.
• Roadrunner Food Bank: New Mexico's largest food bank, operating direct distribution and partner-agency models across a similarly rural, high food-cost geography. Comparable function with substantially larger scale.
• Gleaners Community Food Bank: Southeast Michigan's largest food bank, operating pantry distribution, mobile pantries, and nutrition programming through a partner agency network. Comparable in scope of services but materially larger in scale.
• Second Harvest of Silicon Valley: Bay Area food bank serving one of the nation's highest-cost regions with food distribution and CalFresh/SNAP outreach. The high-cost geography parallels Blaine County's structural food insecurity drivers.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-hunger-coalition

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about The Hunger Coalition