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Senior Food Box Program

Senior Food Box Program

Hawaiʻi Foodbank supports kūpuna across Oʻahu and Kauaʻi through programs that provide nutritious food, dignity, and health support. The Senior Food Box Program serves as a critical resource for seniors facing food insecurity — delivering monthly boxes filled with essential, shelf‑stable groceries that help combat poor health conditions and reduce difficult choices between food and other necessities.

The Senior Food Box Program, also known as the Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP), provides monthly food boxes with shelf-stable groceries full of key nutrients to eligible kūpuna.

For participating kūpuna, CSFP provides more than just food and nourishment. It also helps to combat the poor health conditions often found in kūpuna who are at risk of hunger and experiencing food insecurity. The food provided in each Senior Food Box can play an important role in combatting the health consequences of senior hunger and, ultimately, can help kūpuna avoid choosing between paying for food or other necessities.

Senior Food Boxes are specifically designed to supplement needed sources of nutrients typically lacking in participants’ diets. Boxes include shelf-stable foods such as cereal, juice, protein, milk, peanut butter, dry beans, potatoes, grains, rice, cheese, fruit, vegetables and more.

Eligibility Requirements

The State of Hawaiʻi first received approval to participate in CSFP in 2015. The most current CSFP State Plan specifies program details, including eligibility requirements:

    • Age: Participants must be at least 60 years of age.
    • Income: Each applicant must self-declare that their household income is at or below 150% of the U.S. Federal Poverty Income Guidelines for the State of Hawaiʻi. Income is defined as gross income before deductions for such items as income taxes, employees’ social security taxes, insurance premiums, and bonds
    • Residency: Applicants must reside in the service area to which they are applying for.
    • Must provide a valid state or federal issued photo ID when applying
    • Mail completed applications to: Hawaiʻi Foodbank, 2611 Kilihau Street, Honolulu, Hawaiʻi 96819, for processing.
Household Size

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

For each additional houselold member.

Monthly Income

$2,249

$3,040

$3,832

$4,623

$5,414

$6,205

$6,997

$7,788

$792

Annual Income

$26,985

$36,480

$45,975

$55,470

$64,965

$74,460

$83,955

$93,450

$9,495

Senior Food Box Distribution Sites

  • Calvary Chapel Pearl Harbor
  • Co-Cathedral of Saint Theresa of the Child Jesus
  • Dynamic Compassion in Action at Wimānalo District Park
  • ‘Elepaio Social Services at the Community Learning Center of Māili
  • Hui o Hau‘ula
  • KEY Project
  • Nanaikapono Protestant Church
  • Our Lady of Sorrows Church
  • St. Jude Catholic Church
  • St. Michael Outreach Parish
  • The Parish of St. Clement

Open to the Public

Open to Residents Only

Seniors are more likely to have chronic health conditions that make cooking and grocery shopping difficult.
Many seniors don’t have access to transportation, making it more difficult to get to grocery stores or food pantries.

Program Rules and Regulations

ID CARD: ID card is only required when applying.
ENROLLMENT: Participants are enrolled in the program for 12 months at a time and are required to recertify each year. At recertification, participants must continue to meet all CSFP eligibility requirements in order to continue participating in the program.
CHANGES TO INFORMATION: Participants must inform Hawaiʻi Foodbank of any changes to their income or contact information, in writing, within 10 days.
DISTRIBUTION SITES: Participants may actively participate at only one CSFP distribution site. Participants may request a site change by contacting Kūpuna Programs Coordinator, kupunaprograms@hawaiifoodbank.org, (808) 954-7879.
ACTIVE PARTICIPATION: Participants who do not pick up their Senior Food Box for three (3) consecutive months will be removed from the program for being an inactive participant. We understand that circumstances may occasionally limit participants from picking up their Senior Food Box (e.g. medical appointments, vacations, etc.). In these instances, contact Kūpuna Programs Coordinator, kupunaprograms@hawaiifoodbank.org, (808) 954-7879 as soon as possible to receive an absence exemption.
WAITLISTS: Due to the popularity of the Senior Food Box, distribution sites may maintain waitlists. If no spots are available at a distribution site, applicants will be placed on a waitlist in the order their application was received. Wait-listed clients are not guaranteed to receive a Senior Food Box each month but they are welcome to attend their assigned distribution site each month. We recommend wait-listed clients check in at their distribution no earlier than 15 minutes before the end of the distribution. At the end of each distribution, any available Senior Food Boxes are distributed to clients on the waitlist.
NOTICE OF TERMINATION: Participants will be notified in writing if terminated from the program and have the right to a fair hearing.
FAIR HEARING: If a participant is found ineligible for the program during a recertification review, they have the right to a fair hearing in accordance with the provisions of federal and state law.
USE OF FOOD: Participants are not allowed to trade/sell CSFP food nor are they allowed to purchase/use someone else’s CSFP food for their household.

“To establish a local food distribution system as part of making a more food secure Hawaiʻi, Hawaiʻi Foodbank has been a big part of this for us. There’s been no other organization that has supported us this much. It’s been absolutely game-changing. It’s allowed us to achieve a lot of the goals towards sustainability that we’ve wanted for a long time. There have been many, many benefits that have happened in local farming, and the food and agricultural community is better because of Hawaiʻi Foodbank’s involvement.”
— Kahumana Farms

Kūpuna Fresh

Kūpuna Fresh is a Hawai’i Foodbank program that provides seniors experiencing food insecurity with a monthly bag of fresh, locally grown fruits and vegetables. Offered alongside the Senior Food Box Program at select sites, Kūpuna Fresh supports Hawai’i farmers while delivering high-quality, seasonal produce that varies throughout the year.

Questions About The Program?

Update language: Seniors interested in the Senior Food Box Program must apply through Hawai’i Foodbank. For eligibility screening or application assistance, contact the Kūpuna Programs Coordinator at kupunaprograms@hawaiifoodbank.org or (808) 954-7879.
Interested in providing foreign language assistance?

Must be able to read, write and speak in English and any language other than English (Hawaiian, Cantonese, Chuukese, Ilocano, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Samoan, Spanish, Tagalog, etc.). Basic computer skills and customer service skills are also required. If interested, contact volunteer@hawaiifoodbank.org.