According to Feeding America, more than 1 in 7 people in Louisiana are food insecure — including more than 234,000 children, making Louisiana the state with the second-highest child poverty rate in the United States.

To address this challenge and change those numbers, Mosaic has partnered with the Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank on a three-year, $600,000 investment that will be used to extend the nonprofit’s reach to previously underserved Louisiana communities.  The Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank supports 11 parishes in Louisiana and faces an annual meal gap of 17.2 million meals. While the organization already offered much-needed services like backpacks, school pantries and school closets to surrounding areas, the resources were not yet available in St. James Parish prior to Mosaic’s investment. 

With Mosaic’s support, hundreds of children in St. James Parish will have access to nutritious meals they may not otherwise have during non-school hours. As the world’s leading integrated producer of concentrated phosphate and potash fertilizer, Mosaic recognizes the importance of providing nutritious food to the world.

“This commitment allows us to reach more children who are missing meals and may be struggling in school as a result,” said Mike Manning, President and CEO of the Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank. “We know children struggle physically and mentally when they are not properly nourished. We are truly grateful for Mosaic’s financial investment in these critical services for our community.” 

To help close the gap in St. James Parish, Mosaic connected with the parish school district, which identified a need for a backpack program at multiple schools. Filled with child-friendly foods like fruit cups and cereals for grades K-12, backpacks are sent home with students over the weekend and returned to school the following Monday. The backpack program was initially launched throughout St. James Parish in 2023. More than eight schools participated, and approximately 9,901 backpacks were distributed. This equated to nearly 112,000 meals served to St. James Parish students and their families. 

Additionally, Mosaic’s leadership connecting the school district and the food bank led to the implementation of two school closets – compact, on-site food pantries – for students at two schools in the parish. 

“We’re humbled to see the impact this first year investment has had on the St. James Parish community,” said Brandon Keller, Public Affairs Manager at Mosaic. “We’re honored to do our part to help close the gap and work to alleviate hunger in St. James Parish and beyond.”