For a year, a quiet experiment at two small-town grocery stores turned the usual food pantry routine on its head. Instead of lining up for boxes or racing to a giveaway, neighbors in a pilot from the Colorado Food Cluster walked into their regular stores and simply shopped. At the Save-A-Lot on Leetsdale in Denver and Simple Foods Market in Del Norte, enrolled customers picked out fully subsidized, culturally responsive groceries and checked out like anyone else.
By the time the pilot wrapped, organizers say 181 people from 72 households had taken part, saving roughly $211,000 on groceries while generating more than $250,000 in revenue for the participating stores. Now, program leaders are working to pull together about $1.2 million to see if the model can work at a larger scale in places like Durango and Pueblo.
How The Food Trust Worked
Instead of new cards or paper vouchers, the Food Trust plugged directly into each store’s point-of-sale system. Participants logged in with a phone number, then bought covered items with a built-in subsidy, keeping the entire experience as close to a normal grocery run as possible and, organizers hope, far less stigmatizing.
According to Colorado Food Cluster, the pilot partnered with both larger and independent grocers and layered a tech platform and evaluation team on top of store-selected item lists. Retailers still managed inventory and suppliers as usual, but core foods at checkout could be fully covered for enrolled shoppers.
Pilot Results And Funding
As reported by The Colorado Sun, the pilot launched in July 2025 and quickly drew more than 850 applications for 150 available spots, ultimately serving 181 people from 72 households. The outlet also reports the project raised more than $2.1 million to run the yearlong test, with funding split at about 58% from philanthropy, 41% from public sources, and 1% private…