K A S H R U T . C O M_©

October 26, 2026: from the VinNews

"Met Council opened a $25 million warehouse and conference center in Canarsie on Monday, expanding its capacity to distribute fresh kosher food to families across New York.

"The facility includes expanded cold storage and modern inventory systems designed to increase distribution of fresh food, including chicken, fish, eggs, produce and dairy. Artificial intelligence tools will help forecast demand, optimize delivery routes and reduce food waste.

"Met Council, which describes itself as the nation’s largest Jewish charity dedicated to fighting poverty, distributed more than 20 million pounds of food in fiscal year 2026. Its food assistance and social service programs serve about 350,000 New Yorkers annually, including families, seniors and Holocaust survivors.

"The new warehouse gives the organization a permanent facility designed to support its growing operations, with the capacity to provide food assistance to as many as 1 million New Yorkers, Greenfield said.

"The facility will support Met Council’s holiday food distributions before Rosh Hashanah, Sukkos and Passover. The organization said it distributed more than 2 million pounds of kosher food during the recent Tishrei holiday season.

"The warehouse also supports the organization’s National School Lunch Program, which provides kosher lunches to students in 144 schools, as well as home deliveries to Holocaust survivors and homebound seniors, mobile food pantries and year-round community distributions.

"An on-site digital food pantry will serve residents of Canarsie, allowing customers to select groceries online and pick up their orders. The program offers fresh produce, proteins, dairy products and pantry staples, including kosher options. UJA-Federation of New York helped fund the initiative.

"The facility will also support Met Council’s work through New York’s Social Care Network program, which provides medically tailored meals and nutritious groceries to eligible Medicaid members.

"The project was funded through city, state, federal and private support. State Sen. Sam Sutton secured a $1 million state matching grant, which was matched by Met Council donors and board members. Former New York City Council Speaker Adrienne E. Adams also helped secure city funding for the project."