FY24: 365 Days of Deliberate, Thoughtful, and Intentional Actions
In FY24, 1 in 3 Marylanders still faced hunger, leading to 43.5 million meals accessed at more than 350 Maryland Food Bank statewide partner sites.
While those numbers may feel a bit overwhelming, from our perspective—the Maryland Food Bank is stronger than it’s ever been—capable of feeding that many of our neighbors, while focusing on the future.
From 2020-2023 the exponentially higher need for food due to the pandemic forced us to focus exclusively on feeding Maryland. While we are proud of that work, it absorbed all of our time and energy, leaving us little room to advance the critical root cause and internal sustainability initiatives that will continue our evolution into the food bank of the future.
But in FY24, your unwavering support gave us the space to get back to the bigger questions, concepts, and challenges of truly ending hunger in our state, allowing us to be more deliberate, thoughtful, and intentional.
We deliberately built more pathways out of hunger than ever before: 34 percent more Marylanders graduated our FoodWorks culinary training program as professional Chefs; we expanded workforce development opportunities through a new portal; and are finding new ways to bring even more neighbors into the MFB family through the Speakers Bureau and Community Navigator programs.
Changes to our menu, and the places and ways that neighbors can find food, were thoughtful. We expanded access to the healthiest choices our partners have ever offered, including Culturally Inclusive Crops—in local schools and colleges, through Pantry on the Go events that offer more fresh produce, and a fleet of Mobile Markets that are going even deeper into neighborhoods.
Intentional efforts to foster existing relationships through grantmaking with our distribution partners is helping ensure the right resources are in the right place, at the right time. But we’re also deepening purchasing partnerships with Maryland-based farmers, watermen, and other food producers that can help make things better for both neighbors who access highly nutritious, locally sourced foods, while realizing the economic stability of consistent funding. And when these actions contribute to the sustainability of the land and waterways that we call home, we all win.
And while you’ll see much more in the coming weeks and months, we’re excited to announce “Operation Innovate,” a transformative technology overhaul that has modernized and streamlined our financial and logistical activities, allowing us to be even more deliberate, thoughtful, and intentional in our efforts to end hunger in Maryland.
Together, we can help more neighbors thrive in 2025 
Carmen Del Guercio, President & CEO, Maryland Food Bank
Terry Squyres, Chair, Board of Directors, Maryland Food Bank
About The Author
Carmen Del Guercio
The son of Italian immigrant factory workers, Carmen always had enough food on the table—but as an adult he realized that his family, like so many others, were just one event away from food insecurity. After learning how widespread hunger in Maryland is, Carmen was compelled to help fulfill the food bank’s mission. With this in mind, he joined MFB in 2016 after a successful 29-year career in the banking industry.
Today, Carmen is leading the food bank on an ambitious new movement that is not only feeding more people, but offering solutions that address the “root causes” of food insecurity. Outside of the office, you can find Carmen enjoying local sports teams, spending time with his wife and three grown daughters on Delmarva beaches, or traveling.
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