ARLINGTON, Texas — Texas Health Resources has awarded $122,000 in Growing Good Food grants to six North Texas organizations working to improve nutrition security, making food more affordable and accessible. Launched in 2023, the program supports local growers and small urban farms while helping increase access to fresh, nutritious food across the region. The program is implemented by Texas Health Community Hope, which promotes healthier futures through impactful initiatives, investments and collaborations.

The Growing Good Food Awards are part of a larger holistic effort by Texas Health to improve nutrition security and food systems across North Texas. The awards are designed to support smaller growers, urban farms and nonprofit community organizations that may not fit the parameters for larger grants or support programs. More than $428,000 has been awarded to 27 organizations to fund efforts that support urban farming and promote community access and education.

“Some of the most innovative solutions to improve nutrition security are growing directly from the communities they serve,” said Matt Dufrene, vice president of Community Partnerships, Ambulatory and Virtual Channel at Texas Health. “Through the Growing Good Food Awards, local organizations can build on that momentum by providing resources that make it easier to expand and strengthen access to fresh, healthy food.”

Recipients of the 2026 awards are:

• Brother Bill’s Helping Hand provides free food, clinical services, after-school programming and job training to Dallas residents. Brother Bill’s aims to transform an unused 30,000-square-foot area into an urban agriculture growing and teaching space that will increase access to fresh, healthy food for individuals, including those participating in the clinic’s Produce Prescription program. The garden will also offer hands-on learning opportunities in gardening, sustainability, nutrition and environmental stewardship for youth, interns, volunteers and community members.


• Denton Freedom House is a faith-based program that helps men and women overcome addiction by providing residential housing, emergency food assistance, job training and social support. The organization will use award funds to implement “From Seed to Strength: Growing Good Food, Restoring Lives,” an expansion of its 17-acre residential recovery campus and Freedom Food Pantry. The project aims to increase access to fresh, nutritious produce through the installation of 30 raised garden beds, organic soil, and a water-efficient drip irrigation system while offering therapeutic horticulture, hands-on education, job skill development and opportunities for community engagement.


• Erath County Community Garden is a collaborative initiative in Stephenville, Texas, that grows and donates fresh, organic produce to local food pantries. Grant funds will support additional irrigated raised beds, expansion of the row crop area, construction of a materials storage area, and replacement of a storm-damaged greenhouse. These improvements will help increase the amount and variety of fresh produce available, reduce material waste and runoff, make better use of space, and extend the garden’s growing season.


• Opal’s Farm, named after community leader Opal Lee, sits on the banks of the Trinity River southeast of downtown Fort Worth. The farm plans a three-part project to strengthen access to fresh, locally grown produce in the city’s 76104 ZIP code, one of the unhealthiest in Texas. The project will improve the weekly remote farm stand to create a more permanent, welcoming community market and expand outreach through signage, mailings, door hangers, banners, recipe cards, cooking suggestions and vehicle branding. Two new production sections will be developed on the farm to increase crop yields both for sale at the farm stand and donations to local food pantries.


• Metrocrest Services assists those living in Carrollton, Addison, Farmers Branch, Coppell and parts of Dallas to address gaps in finances, employment and nutrition. Three community gardens grow and donate fresh produce in support of Metrocrest Services' Food Pantry. Funding will support the gardens by adding raised and self-watering beds, compost and teaching space at Metrocrest Teaching Garden, replace rotting beds at Coppell Community Garden, and provide essential equipment for the Carrollton Giving Garden. These improvements will help each garden reliably grow more food and continue hands-on garden education in the community.


• Restorative Farms is a nonprofit urban farm that turns vacant lots into thriving community spaces, providing fresh produce, job training and economic support for South Dallas residents facing transportation, economic and health-related barriers. They plan to expand their internal food systems, thus increasing access to affordable, locally grown produce through subsidized Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) shares, salad packs, pop-up and mobile produce distribution and local farm sourcing. Grant funds will support project-specific costs such as seeds, seedlings, soil, compost, crop and harvest supplies, distribution and nutrition education resources.

“Nutrition security is a complex problem that starts with access to fresh and healthy foods,” Dufrene said. “One way Texas Health is addressing this is by identifying local growers and organizations that are making a meaningful impact in our communities and investing in their work so they can expand their efforts, reach more people and create healthier futures.”

In 2025, Texas Health Community Hope awarded $108,000 in Growing Good Food Awards to six local groups. Other Texas Health initiatives to improve nutrition security and access to healthy foods include Good For You Healthy Hubs, which supply no-cost fresh produce and other healthy staples through schools and community locations; the Double Up Food Bucks program, which allows SNAP recipients to double their dollars for fresh produce at participating grocers and farmers markets; and the Farms to Families program, which diverts unsold or excess produce from local farmers to the community. Texas Health also leads a comprehensive program that supports learning gardens at nearly 75 schools across North Texas.