Linkhart’s Leaving a Legacy

After leading Farm to Family for seven years, Steve Linkhart is leaving the California Association of Food Banks. During Steve’s time at CAFB, he’s grown the Farm to Family program into a national model that ensures access to high quality produce for food banks across the state, while supporting farmers and preventing food loss.

Farm to Family’s infrastructure has been a lifeline for food banks during this pandemic as they work to meet an unprecedented demand for food.

Here are a few highlights, Farm to Family:

• Collaborates with about 240 farms, packers, and distributors each year
• Annually, delivers more than 160 million pounds of produce to California’s food banks
• Supports food banks in sourcing hard to find or costly shelf stable items like California made peanut butter or culturally appropriate masa.
• And, at the start of the pandemic, stepped up to help the California Department of Social Services deliver emergency food boxes throughout California, including to 10+ Native American tribes and areas impacted by wildfires

CAFB is incredibly grateful for the impact of Steve’s work, supporting dozens of food banks and countless Californians that rely on Farm to Family food. It’s great to know that Steve’s talent will continue to support California’s nutrition safety net.

Steve will officially leave CAFB at the end of the year, but is already working to ensure a smooth transition of the Farm to Family program. Going forward, he remains committed to offering support, advice, and a little levity when we need it. No doubt, he leaves large shoes to fill. We are working to secure the right person for the role (if you have suggestions please send them my way). 

Our Farm to Family program will continue on seamlessly nourishing California with farm-fresh produce, and we look forward to seeing how its next leader can make it even better.