We recently released our 2025 Impact Report, full of stories and statistics from this past year and vision for the year ahead.
Not only is an annual report a habit of non-profit organizations to share all they have accomplished alongside their donors, partners, and community, but it’s an important opportunity to reflect on our vision and why we do the work we do. Over this past year especially, the key to food security is twofold: consistency and unwavering focus on dignity.
To show up consistently
At Urban Recipe, we have a recipe for food security. In 2025, we distributed 673,163 pounds of food. The majority of that impacted our Food Co-ops, and that means most of it went to the same 300ish families.
Urban Recipe Food Co-ops are different because they focus on security. Co-ops are not designed to provide a minimum, as many pantries often have to. Instead, co-op members walk home with about 50% of their monthly groceries from their co-op meeting.
Food is distributed equitably, with smaller portions going home with smaller families and larger portions going home with larger families, but everyone is receiving a substantial amount of groceries. Last year, each co-op member went home every other week with a median of 83 pounds of food. This included not just canned items, but fresh produce, frozen meat, grains, canned vegetables and proteins, and even high cost items like eggs and fish.
Co-op members could lean on that consistency. They could have more freedom to have dreams and plans that weren’t immediately interrupted by a growling stomach.
This consistency as a mark of food security was evidenced clearly by the SNAP Benefits disruption in November of last year. Suddenly, families across Georgia were experiencing crisis and seeking additional food sources. At Urban Recipe, we were able to ease some of that need by distributing almost 38,000 pounds of emergency response food.
But apart from our additional Mobile Pantry distributions, our co-ops continued the same. We didn’t add any co-op meetings – we didn’t have to. Our co-op members’ overwhelming reaction during this time of crisis was that they were ok. They repeatedly said, because of co-op, they were not pushed into dire circumstances.
That is our goal. To allow our members to continue to function through economic ups and downs while still in a secure and stable place, which is only possible through consistency.
To show up with dignity
Our impact is also unique because of the co-op model’s focus on the dignity of the person. Co-op members participate. They serve one another. They are accountable and responsible, showing up on time, stepping up to complete tasks, and volunteering for leadership roles in their co-op. Co-op members are functioning members of co-op, but also their community.
Our model is an “ABCD” model, founded on the principles of Asset Based Community Development. This strategy emphasizes harnessing the strengths and resources within a community to promote sustainable development and growth. Co-ops focus on identifying and mobilizing the existing assets, skills, and potential of community members and organizations to foster positive change.
Co-op members serve their co-ops, but also bring those skills, resources, and stability back into their homes. Most of our members learn about co-op through a friend or family member. Our resources are shared because members take ownership of them, stewarding change in their own communities. Because members don’t need to stand in line, visit multiple pantries to make ends meet, or muddle through food they don’t want to take home, they can more easily know our dignity as people, united with our partners, donors and volunteers in being key players in the mission of Urban Recipe.
We invite you to read the whole impact report for stories of dignity, change and consistency in 2025.
