Official Site of The State of New Jersey
Strategic Plan for Food Security in New Jersey
Food insecurity is a complex social condition with broad implications for public health, economic mobility, equity, and long-term resilience. Since beginning its work in 2022, the New Jersey Office of the Food Security Advocate (OFSA, the Office) has strengthened collaborative efforts to address New Jerseyans’ every day and long-term food needs.
Guided by its mandate to coordinate statewide efforts and address unmet needs, OFSA convened partners across sectors to co-develop the New Jersey Food Security Strategic Plan (Strategic Plan) released on February 13th, 2026. This Strategic Plan is a three-year framework designed to guide coordinated, cross-sector action to advance food security for all New Jerseyans.
Inside the Strategic Plan
Establishes a shared understanding of food insecurity across the state by presenting current data and trends, and introduces the Six Dimensions of Food Security Framework, including availability, access, utilization, stability, agency, and sustainability. It also outlines OFSA’s legislative mandate and the broader context shaping New Jersey’s food security work.
Describes the parameters, guiding principles, and evidence base that informed the Strategic Plan. It summarizes key findings from foundational research, including the Exploring the Six Dimensions of Food Security in New Jersey report, and documents the inclusive, multi-sector planning process used to develop the Strategic Plan through data analysis, Executive Committee engagement, and community input.
Outlines the Strategic Plan’s focus areas and strategies, which together provide a structured yet flexible roadmap for advancing food security statewide. Strategies are intentionally connected to the six dimensions of food security, reinforcing a comprehensive and coordinated approach across sectors.
Defines what success looks like for the Strategic Plan and emphasizes shared responsibility across sectors. It includes a clear call to action inviting partners to use the Strategic Plan as a guiding framework for coordination, planning, policy development, and investment.
Preview the Strategic Plan’s Focus Areas and Strategies
- Data Coordination: Coordinate state agencies across sectors to make existing food security–related data available across programs, voluntarily and where possible.
- Impact Analysis and Research: Conduct analyses on the health and economic impacts of food insecurity and research the effectiveness and cost-benefit of food security initiatives and policies.
- Data Visualization and Dissemination: Invest in coordinated, intuitive, asset-based data dashboards and visualization tools that can be customized to support community initiatives.
- Food Access and Availability Infrastructure: Increase investment in transportation, technology, and infrastructure improvements to increase availability and access to food across the food supply chain and access to food/nutrition programs.
- Agriculture Workforce and Land Access: Promote community-centered approaches that support the agricultural workforce and increase access to land for food production.
- Market Channel Creation: Leverage federal, state, institutional, and charitable food purchasing dollars to support farmers and regional supply chains, expand local procurement opportunities, and build long-term demand for a variety of New Jersey-grown foods.
- Food Enterprise Investment: Invest in community-rooted food enterprises and infrastructure to strengthen appropriate and preferred food utilization and economic opportunity.
- Tailored Education, Outreach, and Awareness Efforts: Launch new, and support existing, community-informed education, outreach, and awareness efforts to increase participation in local food security programs and build trust and partnerships with populations with lived and living experiences of food insecurity.
- County-level Coordination: Support action-oriented local food coalitions through county-level coordination that brings together partners across sectors to align food security efforts, develop and implement localized strategies, and share funding opportunities.
- Bi-directional Community Engagement: Establish consistent bi-directional community engagement strategies that feed into strengthening coordination between local and state food coalitions to inform decision-making and support implementation of long-term innovative and scalable food security strategies.
- Screening and Referrals: Provide cross-sector data integration, resources, technical assistance, and training to organizations on screening for program eligibility/need and providing closed-loop referrals to services.
- Multi-benefit Hubs: Establish multi-benefit hubs of various sizes, scales, and modalities to streamline enrollment and access to appropriate food and other social services.
- Public Benefit User Experience: Implement locally tailored improvements in accessibility, user experience, and dignity in benefit enrollment and recertification processes through simplified applications, technology advancements, digital access, and client-centered service design.
- Program Opportunities to Enhance Participation: Protect and leverage federal and state funding and policy options to expand outreach efforts, modernize and streamline enrollment processes, and maximize benefits.
- Federal Nutrition Program Outreach and Referrals: Implement comprehensive outreach and referral initiatives to connect individuals with state- and county-administered federal nutrition programs.
- State-level Interagency Work Group(s): Create state-level interagency work group(s) focused on protecting, aligning, coordinating, and streamlining federal, state, county, and local food security programs, and their administrative processes, definitions, regulations, and policies, where able.
- Cross-sector Coordination, Training, and Resources: Provide coordination, cross-program training, interconnected digital platforms, and other resources to support staff across workforce development, Medicaid, housing, transportation, public health programs, and food assistance programs to provide client-centered, comprehensive services.
- Supply Chain Sustainability Infrastructure: Invest in tangible and intangible infrastructure improvements across the food supply chain to reduce waste, improve distribution efficiency in times of disruption, and enhance food security stability and sustainability.
- Sustainable Food Procurement and Waste Diversion: Educate and incentivize institutional, large-scale food generators (e.g., hospitals, universities, corporations, and businesses with food retail) to implement sustainable food procurement practices and support food waste diversion programs, prioritizing food donation.
- Sustainable Farming Practices: Promote incremental sustainable farming practices that improve soil health, conserve natural resources, and strengthen long-term food production resilience.
- Food Distribution Network Disaster Preparedness: Enhance disaster preparedness across the food system, including strengthening charitable food distribution networks and providing education and technical assistance on risk mitigation for farmers.
- Food Security Positioning in Climate Work: Integrate food security within climate action.
Coming Next
To support implementation of the Strategic Plan, OFSA is releasing an accompanying Implementation Tactics and Action Planning Toolkit (hereafter referred to as “the Implementation Toolkit”) in early 2026. This resource will serve as a bridge from the “what and why” defined in the Strategic Plan to the “how and who” of work in action. The Implementation Toolkit will provide guidance and practical tools for organizations, coalitions, and sectors to implement relevant strategies through implementation tactics that take into account the assets, challenges, and priorities of their communities.
Join the Movement toward New Jersey Food Security
Advancing food security is about more than food, it is about dignity, equity, health, resilience, and opportunity. This Strategic Plan will only succeed if every sector sees themselves in it and takes action.
- Explore the full Strategic Plan to begin informing and strengthening your food security work.
- Share the Strategic Plan with your networks and partners via our Partner Communications Toolkit.
- Sign up for Strategic Plan updates and implementation tools.
Together, we can build a more coordinated, equitable, and resilient food system, one that ensures all New Jerseyans have access to adequate food, now and in the future.