Hartford Food System Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
060991880
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2023
Forms available
Form 990 2023
Location
Hartford, CT, USA
Phone
8602969325
Rating
67
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Food Programs

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$279,495
Expenses
$445,987
Assets
$374,610
Liabilities
$136,017

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2023. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

11 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • BILLIE SCRUSE (Executive Dir.): $87,539 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2023. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Fight hunger & improve nutrition for the disadvantaged via sustainable, non-emergency strategies.Programs are implemented to improve access to nutritious & affordable food, help consumers make informed food choices & advance responsible food policies at all levels of govt.

What it reported doing in 2023

Policy/training, education & research: acts as a consultant for other organizations to aid them in setting up their own food systems and also provide nutrition awareness to individuals thru conferences, workshops, outreach & participating in food policy commissions.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 77% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. A relatively small share of voting board members are independent and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 77
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 26
  • Sustainability: 17
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 95.4%; rating input score 95
  • Program expense ratio: 59.8%; rating input score 60
  • Fundraising efficiency: $9.12 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 37; 37th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 0%; rating input score 0; 7th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 5 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 62
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -59.6%; rating input score 5; 5th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.84; rating input score 36; 36th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.36; rating input score 15; 15th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 19.6%; rating input score 19; 19th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -0.9% per year; rating input score 0; 29th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 2.7% per year; rating input score 100; 42nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 10% per year; rating input score 100; 65th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 95.4% of revenue deployed · 59.8% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 0 of 7 board members independent · 5 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $267K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $88K · 11 people listed
  • Consistency: 29 of 29 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2010 to 2023
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • High — Accountability: Independent voting board scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 37/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 7 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 5/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 36/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 15/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 19/100.