Poland launches new edition of EU-funded food assistance program, providing packages to families and individuals meeting income criteria.
Program Overview
The “European Funds for Food Assistance” program, co-financed by the European Union, is being implemented between 2021 and 2027. Four organizations will distribute food packages across Poland through their branches and local partner organizations. Each package contains 24 products including canned vegetables, pasta, flour, oil, cookies, sugar, coffee, cereals, canned meat, and jam.
Eligibility Criteria
To qualify for food packages, individuals or families must meet an income criterion of 250% of the threshold applicable to social assistance benefits. This means single individuals with incomes not exceeding 2,676.50 PLN and families with incomes not exceeding 2,180.95 PLN per person are eligible.
Application Process
Eligible individuals must apply to their local social assistance center, where they will receive a special referral for food packages after income verification. With this referral, applicants must then contact the organization participating in the program within their municipality. Social assistance centers and local organizations will inform about the schedule and locations for package collection.
Scale of Assistance
The Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Policy estimates that the 2024 edition, running through September, will provide approximately 60,000 tons of food worth 400 million PLN to families and individuals. Partner organizations plan to distribute over 4.4 million food packages during this period.
Complementary Support
The Food Assistance program operates independently from the government’s “Meal at School and at Home for 2024-2028” program, which provides free meals for children, students, and adults. While the Food Assistance program has a higher income threshold (250% of social assistance criteria), the government meal program has a lower threshold (200% of social assistance criteria) at 2,020 PLN for single individuals and 1,646 PLN per person in families.
