About
Food For The Poor (FFTP) is one of the largest hunger and poverty relief charities in the United States, headquartered in Coconut Creek, Florida. Founded in 1982, the organization serves families living in extreme poverty across Latin America and the Caribbean — including Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, and Jamaica — through food distribution, housing, clean water, healthcare, education, micro-enterprise, and disaster relief programs.
Mission
FFTP holds the preservation of human dignity and the care of those in need as a core principle. While founded on the religious principle that it is a moral duty to clothe and feed the poor, the organization is neutral, impartial, apolitical, and encompassing of all religions and beliefs. Its assistance programs take a sustainable and holistic approach to poverty alleviation, aiming to demonstrate that poverty is not inevitable.
What they do
- Hunger relief: distribution of fortified MannaPack meals, family and community gardens, community markets, and agricultural development to increase local food production
- Housing: building safe, secure homes so families can live in a supportive environment
- Clean water: wells and water projects that promote health and halt the spread of disease
- Healthcare: community health centers and medical supplies for remote communities
- Micro-enterprise: income-generating projects such as beekeeping, sewing, farming tools, and animal husbandry
- Education and child sponsorship through the Angels of Hope program
- Emergency relief after natural disasters, including recent responses to earthquakes in Venezuela and Colombia and hurricane relief in Jamaica
History
Ferdinand Mahfood founded Food For The Poor in 1982 following a transformative visit to a poorhouse in Kingston, Jamaica. FFTP launched its first micro-enterprise program in 1984, built its first home in Jamaica in 1985, and completed its first disaster relief operation after Hurricane Gilbert in 1988. It expanded to Central America in 1996, was ranked the largest hunger and poverty relief charity in the U.S. by The Chronicle of Philanthropy in 2008, and relocated its headquarters to Coconut Creek, Florida in 2007. Ed Raine serves as President & CEO.
Scale and impact
According to the organization, between 2019 and 2023 FFTP served 943 million meals, built 11 thousand houses, distributed $3.2 billion worth of aid, and shipped 15 thousand aid containers. Since 1982, it reports that 6 million donors have made possible more than 4.7 billion meals, 96,381 safe and secure homes, and 105,415 tractor-trailers of essential aid (meal totals reflect food shipments from 2006–2025; home and trailer totals are cumulative from 1982–2025).
Financials
Food For The Poor is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit, Tax ID 59-2174510. Per its 2024 Annual Report, administrative expenses represented 3.1% of total expenses in 2024, while program services (including donated goods, cash grants, and cash purchases) accounted for 87.9%; donated goods made up 71.6% of revenue. According to IRS Form 990 data on ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer, for fiscal year 2023 FFTP reported total revenue of about $453.9 million and total expenses of about $468.3 million (figures include the value of donated goods).