Maximizing Food Banks' Efficiency with AI Community Profiles
Background:
Food insecurity remains a critical issue affecting millions across the United States, with food banks playing a pivotal role in local communities. One prominent food bank, operating over 300 locations throughout Indiana, partnered with Data317 to harness data science to optimize its operations and deepen its community impact.
Surfacing Unmet Opportunities:
Data317 began by gathering, cleaning, and analyzing extensive transactional, demographic, and geographic data from diverse Indiana communities. Through advanced analytics and machine learning models, our team identified numerous opportunities to leverage data science and AI effectively.
One such opportunity was found in their food distribution process. A major challenge in providing impactful support is accurately differentiating communities based on their specific needs. For instance, communities with a higher percentage of elderly residents often require more health and wellness items, while areas with more young families might need increased access to baby products and family-oriented groceries. However, determining these "communities" and mapping them geographically poses significant challenges.
Optimizing Product Offerings Across 300+ Locations:
In partnership with the food bank, Data317 aimed to tailor product offerings to meet each community’s needs. However, customizing over 300 locations would be operationally impractical for the food bank and make it difficult to audit uniform aid distribution. They needed a solution that could easily scale with their existing distribution infrastructure.
To address this, Data317 developed a specialized neural network to create ten distinct AI-community need profiles based on demographic variables such as age distribution, eligibility for Medicare/Medicaid, household expenses, and other important factors. Each of the 300 locations was then assigned a profile that best suited their community's needs. This enabled the food bank to stock products most relevant to its customers while streamlining the supply chain and logistics.
The Impact:
Armed with this comprehensive understanding, the food bank can now allocate resources more effectively. Each location is stocked with items that meet its community’s needs, reducing resource waste and enhancing overall impact. This approach not only improves inventory management but also strengthens the food bank's connection with the communities it serves.
At Data317, we are immensely grateful to work with organizations that profoundly impact our community. We are honored to be a part of their mission to fight food insecurity and improve the lives of countless individuals.
