California FreshWorks Fund via Calvert Foundation CIN
Loan
Raises funds for Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) in both the US and around the world
For millions of disadvantaged people in the U.S. and internationally, the door to financial opportunity is closed. Since 1995, Calvert Foundation has been working to open that door and let people in. Calvert Foundation is a nonprofit that has pioneered a new type of investing through our Community Investment Note that delivers a social and financial return. We make it possible for everyday people to invest in organizations around the world that empower people living in low-income communities.
The Note was the first retail impact investment with a global reach available to non-accredited investors, and through our new Women INvesting in Women INitiative (WIN-WIN), Calvert Foundation is the first organization to offer a retail impact investment product with a gender lens. We believe in giving a hand-up and enabling people to lift themselves out of poverty.
Summary
The California FreshWorks Fund will finance grocery stores and other forms of healthy food retail and distribution. It is specifically designed to:
- increase access to healthy food in under-served communities
- spur economic development that supports healthy communities
- inspire innovation in healthy food retailing
Social Impact
The California FreshWorks Fund provides a tested, scalable solution to the problem of food deserts throughout California that will improve health, spark economic development, and help transform under-served communities into communities of opportunity. The availability of healthy foods where we live has been shown to influence what we choose to eat and to reduce the prevalence of obesity and diabetes.
The California FreshWorks Fund is being financed by The California Endowment, NCB Capital Impact, NCB, FSB, Calvert Foundation, Catholic Healthcare West, Kaiser Permanente, JP Morgan Chase, Morgan Stanley and US Bank. It is modeled after the successful Pennsylvania Fresh Food Financing Initiative and is intended to align with the National Healthy Food Financing Initiative.
