Safefood has announced a significant all-island €1.5 million investment in its Community Food Initiatives Programme 2025-28, with key projects across Galway receiving funding as part of this initiative.
This four-year programme aims to positively influence the eating habits of people in low-income communities throughout the island of Ireland, fostering lasting change and strengthening community resilience around healthier eating. The Galway-based organisations receiving funding are:
Croí na Gaillimhe Resource Centre (SVP ): Serving communities in Galway city and county, this project will deliver the Healthy Food Made Easy programme, adapted for cultural needs, with a focus on those living in direct provision in the county. Projects will engage with local businesses and producers to improve knowledge on the availability of local healthy food.
Galway City Partnership: Serving communities in Galway city, this project will deliver the Healthy Food Made Easy programme, which includes practical supermarket visits. It will also establish a sustainable community food pantry in the Ballybane community as a pilot project, with the hope of developing this into a long-term service.
Welcoming the launch of Safefood’s Community Food Initiatives Programme, Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll MacNeill TD said: “Unhealthy food choices are increasingly becoming the norm, impacting the health of our population. I am encouraged by the focus of Safefood’s Community Food Initiatives, which are more than just a source of learning about food; they build practical skills and knowledge at the grassroots level. I welcome that these local projects foster connections within communities, aiming to create a future where healthy eating is realistic, achievable, and accessible to all.”
Dr Gary A. Kearney, Chief Executive, Safefood said they are excited to launch the latest round of Safefood Community Food Initiatives.
“They have a proven track record of effectiveness and success, and we want to extend their impact by doubling the scale and increasing the scope of our work to include not only good nutritional and healthy eating help but also including ‘tips and tricks’ around food safety for members of the public,” he said.
“In addition to the 28 projects, which will be funded for 4 years announced today, we are introducing a new cross border partnership that will fund a further 4 cross border projects. We will also be funding 25 additional one-off community projects each year under the scheme.”
“This year marks 15 years since we first started working among communities and more than 65,000 people have taken part since then. By supporting people in low-income communities, these projects have the potential to create long-lasting changes in how people shop, plan and cook food. Ultimately, this work is about improving the access to, and availability of, healthy and safe food in our communities,” added Mr Kearney.
The Safefood initiative will support each group to establish, manage, and sustain a local food initiative that promotes lasting behaviour change and strengthens community resilience around healthier eating. For more information on The Community Food Initiatives (CFI ) Programme 2025–2028 visit: www.safefood.net/community-food-initiatives
