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Sansum Diabetes wins $25,000 grant for Farming For Life program.

Sansum Diabetes Research Institute (SDRI) is honored to be recognized by Sun Life U.S. as a 2019 “Team Up Against Diabetes” grant recipient for SDRI’s innovative Farming For Life program, providing prescriptions for free organic vegetables to Santa Barbara County residents living with type 2 diabetes.

Sun Life awarded a total of $250,000 in grants to 5 organizations from across the country based on their programs and initiatives supporting diabetes prevention, management and education, as well as healthy living and nutrition for local communities in need. This year’s winners are: Sansum Diabetes Research Institute, Boston Children’s Hospital, NOVA Scripts Central, Mama’s Kitchen in San Diego and Western Maryland Health System.

“We are so pleased to continue supporting many different grassroots organizations around the country since starting this program three years ago,” said Dan Fishbein, M.D., president of Sun Life U.S., which has given over $19 million to the diabetes cause globally. “We have been strongly committed to diabetes awareness and education for several years, and these grant winners show the same commitment and dedication to supporting the needs of diabetes patients and those at risk. With more than 30 million Americans afflicted with Type 1 or 2 diabetes, these local organizations play a critical role in diabetes awareness and treatment.”

Sun Life’s grant will help SDRI fund the cost of local produce which is at the foundation of Farming For Life.

Investments and support from businesses like Sun Life not only secure the continuation of our current operations but enable us to work towards scaling Farming For Life to serve more of the Santa Barbara community.

Farming For Life, which officially launched in early 2019, has three vegetable distribution sites including Santa Barbara City College and Unity Shoppe of Santa Barbara. SDRI’s goal is to establish new vegetable distribution areas in Goleta and Carpinteria, as well as engage additional farms to increase vegetable variety.

Farming For Life unites multiple Santa Barbara County sectors and builds a bridge between healthcare, social services, and agriculture to eradicate the heavy burdens of chronic disease and food insecurity while simultaneously enhancing the capacity of and demand for local farmers to supply fresh produce.

Farming For Life has already seen overwhelmingly positive results. Participants have lost weight, have a reduced waist circumference and a dramatic fall in blood pressure–all risk factors for diabetes.

Potential program participants who are food insecure and have diabetes or prediabetes may contact SDRI’s Mary Kujan, Project Coordinator–Farming for Life: (805) 682-7640 ext. 243 or at mkujan@sansum.org.

About Sansum Diabetes Research Institute:

Sansum Diabetes Research Institute (SDRI) has been on the cutting edge of diabetes research, education, and clinical care since our founding in 1944 by Dr. William Sansum, the first U.S. physician to manufacture and administer insulin in the treatment of diabetes. With an established world class reputation for innovation in the field of type 1 diabetes including the Artificial Pancreas system and diabetes in pregnancy, SDRI is broadening its area of expertise to address a range of issues in type 2 diabetes in an effort to address this growing epidemic. Learn more at diabetestravel.sansum.org.