SENT Inc. expanding its food pantry in Topeka

TOPEKA (KSNT) - SENT Inc. will partner with the Kansas City Food Hub (KCFH) to deliver fresh food weekly to a pantry in southeast Topeka.

Starting on Oct. 27, KCFH started delivering fresh products from local producers to SENT's south side campus free of any delivery fees. The first delivery included 160 pumpkin pies and also had produce like zucchini, yellow squash, green bell peppers, red slicing tomatoes, butternut squash and Kansas-grown gala apples. SENT said the food was all sourced from within 100 miles of the Topeka location.

“This partnership helps add resilience to our food system and ensures that access to fresh produce isn’t dependent on distance or income,” said Johnathan Sublet, executive director of SENT Inc. “It’s about walking alongside our neighbors in a sustainable way that supports their physical, mental, and emotional well-being. We’re grateful to the Kansas City Food Hub for helping us take another step toward building a thriving, self-sustaining neighborhood.”

The partnership is facilitated by Erika Debrick Kelly, executive director of Hunger Free Kansas, who helped bring SENT and the Kansas City Food Hub together.

SENT said the groundwork is being built for a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program tailored to the Hi-Crest and southeast Topeka communities. The program aims to connect residents directly with local farmers through a subscription model that provides weekly boxes of fresh produce.

SENT and KCFH are also exploring the development of Food as Medicine boxes. The program would allow medical providers at the Southside Wellness Clinic to prescribe nutrition boxes customized to patients' needs and health goals.

“We see this as the next evolution in community-based wellness,” Sublet said. “When medical care and nutrition align, we not only treat illness, we prevent it. By investing in sustainable, local partnerships like this one, we’re making sure families can access healthy foods as part of their care, not apart from it.”

To learn more about SENT Inc, click here.

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