Quality Insights & Facing Hunger Food Bank – Nourishing Health and Hope in West Virginia

In January 2024, Quality Insights began a collaboration with the Facing Hunger Food Bank in Huntington, WV. Together, they’ve made significant strides in combating food insecurity and improving health outcomes for individuals living with chronic diseases across the region.

Facing Hunger Food Bank is a vital resource, providing nutritious canned, boxed, fresh, and prepared foods to nearly 130,000 individuals annually. Their food recovery model gathers food from supermarkets, restaurants, wholesalers, and farmers, ensuring that surplus food is repurposed instead of wasted. With a vast 4,538-square-mile service area covering 11 counties in West Virginia, the food bank partners with 300+ agencies and programs—from soup kitchens to homeless shelters—to ensure no one in need is left behind. By sourcing food from the food bank rather than purchasing from commercial suppliers, partner organizations can expand their services and further their own missions, creating a ripple effect of support and sustainability throughout the community.

Quality Insights joined this effort to strengthen the Medically Indicated Food Boxes program, designed to provide essential food and educational resources to households with members suffering from chronic diseases. Each month, participants receive targeted nutrient-specific foods and customized educational materials to help manage conditions such as chronic kidney disease, diabetes, and hypertension—at no cost.

Here’s a glimpse of some of the resources included: 

• Chronic Kidney Disease: "Eating Healthy for Your Kidneys" & "What Your Lab Results Might Be Telling You About Your Kidneys"
• Diabetes: "Healthy Heart Diabetes Plate" & "Heat Safety Tips for Diabetes"
• Hypertension: "10 Tips to Cutting Salt" & "Understanding BP Numbers"

Quality Insights consistently distributes essential resources each month to help families manage their health and reduce chronic illness complications, and Dr. Jean Storm and Cyndi Kirkhart highlighted the program's success in a podcast discussing the impact of medically tailored food boxes across West Virginia (Listen to the podcast Facing Hunger Food Bank Episode).

The collaboration between Quality Insights and Facing Hunger Food Bank goes beyond food distribution; it provides vital nutrition and education to help individuals manage chronic conditions and improve their quality of life. Together, we empower vulnerable individuals in the region, demonstrating how partnerships can create meaningful change and enhance community well-being.