Hunger in Maine has grown substantially since the pandemic. In 2021, Preble Street responded by launching its vision for the Food Security Hub as a way to meet the increased demand for emergency food services. The result of that vision — the newly renovated Preble Street Food Security Hub — a sustainable, comprehensive, and collaborative approach dedicated to ending hunger in Maine — is officially launched at a critical time for food insecurity in the United States.
A culinary team with professional experience spanning fine dining, large-scale catering, research and development, and food justice lead staff and volunteers in the new 5,000 square foot kitchen. Meals are prepared daily from scratch, using local produce donated from area farms. State-of-the art equipment, including blanchers, blast chillers, and dehydrators, allows the preservation of produce that would otherwise have spoiled and increases access to nutritious fruits and vegetables year-round.
Food access is a challenge statewide, and this new facility allows us to support the growing number of people across Maine who are food insecure and struggling to get nutritious meals on their table. Preble Street now has the capacity to cook up to 10,000 meals a day, and store 50,000 frozen fully prepared meals at this facility in South Portland, ME.
We now have the capacity and flexibility to respond to whatever the emerging or emergency needs are – new populations, new organizations to partner with, changing demographics, natural disasters, and economic downturns.
“With federal cuts and ongoing threats to emergency food assistance and healthcare chipping away at the safety nets that help many people in our community stay fed, healthy, and housed, the potential of the Food Security Hub could not be more needed right now. We are going to work relentlessly to feed vulnerable people in Maine. The Food Security Hub makes it possible for so many more people and organizations to join us in this work.”
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The Food Security Hub is a critical component of Preble Street’s low-barrier social work programs. When basic needs are met, employment services, housing, and/or connection to health services become the next step.
The new Preble Street Food Security Hub, with its custom designed kitchen and distribution centers, enables the agency to better meet the needs of the diverse groups of people experiencing food insecurity in Maine: people experiencing homelessness and housing insecurity, youth, families, immigrants and asylum seekers, older adults, and Veterans.
Using a production and delivery model to address food insecurity in Maine, the Food Security Hub currently distributes hot, nourishing meals to partners across Southern Maine including:
- Boys & Girls Club of Southern Maine
- YMCA
- City of Portland Homeless Services Center
- Asylum-seekers sheltered at the City of Portland’s Riverside shelter
- Elena’s Way, Preble Street’s Wellness Shelter
- Youth experiencing homelessness
- Children and families at Frances Warde at Mercy Hospital
- Patients receiving recuperative care at the Congress Street Health Center, a partnership between Greater Portland Health, Preble Street, and Maine Medical Center
- Unsheltered individuals throughout the city of Portland and into South Portland and Westbrook through the Preble Street Street Outreach Collaborative and Milestone Home Teams
For decades, Preble Street has fed people impacted by various emergencies and natural disasters, from the Ice Storm of 1998 to the pandemic, and more. The increased processing and freezer capacity of the Food Security Hub allows us to have 50,000 frozen, prepared meals on hand and available for future emergencies. Those meals, in addition to the 10,000 meals that the Food Security Hub will be able to produce daily, will serve as a vital resource for any Mainer in need in time of an emergency.
Sustainability is also a priority at the Food Security Hub. The design of the building includes off-site solar panel arrays which offset a substantial portion of energy needs, LED lighting, and energy-efficient appliances, including an energy recovery dishwasher that repurposes heating and a dehydrator that extends the life of food and reduces waste.
Peek inside the new 5,000 square foot industrial kitchen at the Preble Street Food Security Hub! Photos by Izzy Newman Photography.
Partners & Support
Preble Street has received initial funding for this $12 million project from several organizations, including significant support from the John T. Gorman Foundation, which advances and invests in innovative ideas and opportunities that improve the lives of Maine’s most vulnerable people. Preble Street is looking to raise an additional one million dollars to fully realize the vision for this dynamic and collaborative multi-faceted food preparation, production, and distribution site that will assure adequate nutrition to Maine’s most vulnerable people.
A key partner in this effort is Good Shepherd Food Bank (GSFB), which sources and distributes food to more than 500 community-based organizations working statewide to improve access to nutritious food for Mainers experiencing hunger. Recognizing that a “meals-to-go” model offered not only optimal safety during a public health crisis but also improved client experience, GSFB is eager to support this partnership that fills a critical gap in “to-go” meal options, increases the capacity for culturally appropriate meals, and creates space for partners to collaborate on strategies to end hunger in Maine.
By expanding our work with GSFB, frozen, prepared, individualized meals prepared by the Food Security Hub will be able to be distributed throughout their network of more than 300 food pantries around the entire state.
The Hannaford Charitable Foundation, whose mission is to invest in creating and sustaining healthy communities in their five-state region by providing financial support to nonprofit organizations and programs that focus on improvement of the root causes impacting the quality of life for our customers, associates and neighbors, is also a key supporter of the Food Security Hub. Hannaford understands that ending hunger in Maine requires new, community-centered resources such as the Food Security Hub, which will not only help connect those at risk of going hungry with easy-to-access meals but also provide a space for people to work together toward ensuring that no one goes without the nutritious food they need.
Another partner, the Cumberland County Food Security Council, initiates and facilitates collaborative action toward a just, resilient, and sustainable food system that ensures equitable access for all people to enough healthy food. CCFSC includes people with the lived experience of poverty, community leaders, and representatives from local food security organizations who are leading the efforts to end hunger in Cumberland County and across Maine.
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A bold step forward in the fight against hunger
“This place is just amazing. And thank goodness it’s ready for business. The timing for the opening of this Food Security Hub could not be better. With federal cuts to emergency food assistance and healthcare chipping away at the safety nets that help many people in our community stay fed, healthy, and housed, we collectively need
Preble Street celebrates grand opening of Food Security Hub at a critical time for food insecurity in the U.S
Hunger in Maine has grown substantially since the pandemic. In 2021, Preble Street responded by launching its vision for the Food Security Hub as a way to meet the increased demand for emergency food services. Today, the result of that vision — the newly renovated Preble Street Food Security Hub — a sustainable, comprehensive, and
Fostering connection through food
Preble Street Food Programs is committed to providing the most nutritious, delicious, and balanced meals possible for people struggling with food insecurity in Maine. While recent updates to the Preble Street Food Security Hub have made this easier, there are still unique challenges. We rely on donations, meaning we often don’t know what ingredients we