Everything you need to know about how Foodarity.org works, how we protect families, and where your money goes.
Every family application is reviewed before their profile goes live. Our screening process includes a personal conversation (phone or video call) with the applicant conducted by our Executive Director, verification that the applicant is located within our service area, and a review of the household information provided in the application.
We do not run criminal background checks. Food banks do not require them. SNAP does not require them. We believe that requiring background checks to receive food creates a barrier that is inconsistent with our mission. Our screening is designed to confirm genuine need, not to judge a family's history.
Several layers work together to prevent misuse:
When the family you funded receives their grocery delivery, you receive a confirmation notification that includes what food categories were delivered and the date of delivery. Every donation is tracked from receipt through fulfillment. The groceries are ordered through established grocery delivery services (such as Instacart or Walmart) and delivered directly to the family. At no point does cash touch the recipient's hands.
No. This is enforced by the technology, not just by policy.
Families never have access to an open shopping cart or a payment method. When a family is funded, our platform generates a pre-built grocery list through the grocery delivery API. That list contains only food items we have selected based on the family's category preferences (Produce, Protein, Dairy, Grains, etc.). The family can review the list and swap brands, but they cannot add items that are not on the list.
Alcohol, tobacco, non-food items, vitamins, supplements, and hot prepared foods are structurally excluded from every grocery template. There is no product search, no free-text input, and no mechanism for adding restricted items. This follows the same principle as SNAP/EBT, where eligible items are defined at the category level, but enforced through API architecture rather than point-of-sale systems.
Family profiles display only: first name (no last name), city (not street address), household size, number of children, employment status, and food category preferences.
We do not display last names, email addresses, phone numbers, street addresses, or any identifying details that could be used to locate a family. A profile might read: "Maria, Springdale, 5 in household, 3 children, Part-time." That is enough for a donor to make a meaningful connection without compromising the family's safety.
Family safety is a core design principle, not an afterthought. Here is how we protect families:
In short: a donor knows they helped "Maria in Springdale" and what food she received. They do not know Maria's last name, where she lives, her phone number, or how to contact her. That is by design.
We intentionally collect the minimum data necessary to operate. We do not collect Social Security numbers, dates of birth, income documentation, government ID, bank account numbers, or credit card numbers (payment processing is handled entirely by Stripe).
For full details, see our Privacy Policy.
A transparent operational fee (currently 12%) is applied to each donation. This fee covers payment processing (Stripe charges approximately 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction), website hosting, email notifications, and basic platform operations. The remaining 88% of your donation goes directly to purchasing groceries.
This fee is disclosed at checkout before you donate. There are no hidden fees. For example, on a $10 donation, $1.20 covers operations and $8.80 becomes food. On a $75 donation (the delivery threshold for a family of 3-4), approximately $66 goes to groceries.
At current operating scale, total monthly platform costs are under $50 (hosting, automation tools, email). The operational fee more than covers these costs.
Foodarity is designed to be self-sustaining from day one. The 12% operational fee covers all platform costs. We do not depend on grants, institutional funding, or external capital to keep the lights on. As long as donations flow, the platform operates.
If donation volume drops, the platform simply serves fewer families. There is no fixed overhead that would cause it to collapse. The technology costs scale to near-zero at low volume (all core services have free tiers). And because our Executive Director and Founder are both volunteering their time in this first phase, there is no payroll to cover.
Longer term, we are pursuing 501(c)(3) nonprofit status, which would make donations tax-deductible and open the door to grants and corporate sponsorships. We are also exploring local business sponsorships where NWA companies can sponsor individual family deliveries.
Not at this time. Foodarity.org is currently operating as a technology platform under Kool Krowd Ventures. We are not a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, and donations are not tax-deductible.
We are actively working toward achieving nonprofit status. Once that is in place, tax receipts will be provided for all qualifying donations. We will update this page and notify donors when that status is achieved.
Donations are non-refundable once processed. Because donations are pooled toward a family's grocery delivery threshold, refunding individual contributions after the fact would disrupt the fulfillment process for that family. We encourage you to donate only amounts you are comfortable with.
For full details, see our Terms of Use.
The delivery threshold is the total donation amount needed to trigger a grocery delivery for a family. The baseline is $75, which covers a meaningful grocery order for a household of 2-4 people after the operational fee and delivery costs.
This threshold may be adjusted based on household size (larger families may have a higher threshold) and will be refined as we gain experience with actual fulfillment costs in our service area.
If a family's profile is removed or archived before their funding threshold is reached, any donations already made toward that family are redirected to the general pool. The general pool funds deliveries for other families in need. Your donation still becomes food.
$1. We believe micro-donations from many people are more powerful than large gifts from a few. $1 from 75 people feeds a family.
Both. When the full platform launches, you will be able to browse family profiles and fund a specific family, or contribute to a general pool that is distributed to families closest to their funding threshold. During the current pre-launch phase, you can sign up to be notified when family profiles go live.
Yes. When the family you funded receives their grocery delivery, you receive a confirmation that includes the food categories delivered and the delivery date. We do not itemize every product (e.g., "2 lbs chicken breast, 1 gal milk") but you will know that your donation funded a delivery of Produce, Protein, and Dairy to Maria in Springdale on a specific date.
All payments are processed securely by Stripe, one of the most widely trusted payment processors in the world. Your credit card information is transmitted directly to Stripe and is never seen, stored, or processed by Foodarity. We receive only a transaction confirmation and the donation amount.
Anyone experiencing food insecurity in our service area (currently Northwest Arkansas, including Bentonville, Rogers, Springdale, Fayetteville, and surrounding cities in Benton and Washington Counties). There are no income requirements, no government eligibility checks, and no documentation needed beyond what is on the application form.
The application asks for: your first name, email address, city, household size, number of children, employment status, and which food categories you need (Produce, Protein, Dairy, Grains, etc.). You can also note any dietary restrictions or allergies.
We do not ask for your Social Security number, date of birth, income, government ID, or any financial documents.
Applications are reviewed within 48 hours. Once your profile is approved and goes live, the timeline depends on how quickly donors fund your delivery threshold. Some families may be funded within days; others may take longer. Once your threshold is reached, groceries are typically delivered within 1-3 days.
You select the food categories you need on your application (Produce, Protein, Dairy, Grains, Canned Goods, Baby Food, etc.). The platform builds a grocery list from those categories. You can review the list before the order is placed and swap brands if preferred. The specific items, brands, and quantities depend on what is available at your local retailer.
Yes. After your delivery is fulfilled, you may re-apply. Returning applicants go through a re-qualification conversation with our Executive Director to confirm continued need. We want to help families through difficult periods, not create permanent dependency.
No. There is no cost to apply or to receive food through Foodarity. The groceries are fully funded by donor contributions.
Not yet. Foodarity.org is currently operating as a technology platform under Kool Krowd Ventures, based in Rogers, Arkansas. We are actively pursuing 501(c)(3) nonprofit status. Our Executive Director is leading that effort. We will update this page when nonprofit status is achieved.
Food banks are warehouse-and-distribution operations that collect donated food and distribute it through pantries, shelters, and partner organizations. They do essential work. Foodarity is not a food bank and does not compete with them.
Foodarity is a technology platform that connects donors directly with specific families. Instead of donating canned goods to a warehouse, you fund a grocery delivery to Maria in Springdale. You see who you are helping, how close they are to their goal, and what food they receive. It is a supplement to what food banks do, not a replacement.
We are launching in Northwest Arkansas (NWA), serving Bentonville, Rogers, Springdale, Fayetteville, and surrounding cities in Benton and Washington Counties. We plan to expand to additional markets (including Little Rock, Tulsa, Memphis, Dallas, Nashville, and Cincinnati) after validating the model in NWA.
Foodarity was originally launched in Rogers, Arkansas in April 2009. It is being relaunched in 2026 under the leadership of its original founder (technology, strategy, and operations) and a volunteer Executive Director (community outreach, fundraising, family screening, and nonprofit development). Both roles are currently unpaid.
There are several ways to support Foodarity beyond financial contributions: