Volunteers pass out fresh vegetables for a Thanksgiving meal at the Alameda Food Bank in Alameda, Calif., in 2009. The percentage of Americans who report struggling to afford food has remained stubbornly near recession-era highs. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images hide caption

itoggle caption Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Celebrity chefs (from left) Jose Andres, Carla Hall and Anthony Bourdain rev up the crowd at last year's Capital Food Fight fundraising event for DC Central Kitchen. The nonprofit's fortunes have risen alongside those of its celebrity chef fans. DC Central Kitchen/Flickr hide caption

itoggle caption DC Central Kitchen/Flickr

These wooden tokens are handed out to shoppers who use SNAP benefits to purchase fresh produce at the Crossroads Farmers Market near Takoma Park, Md. Customers receive tokens worth twice the amount of money withdrawn from their SNAP benefits card — in other words, they get "double bucks." Dan Charles/NPR hide caption

itoggle caption Dan Charles/NPR

Pinatas are among the new generation of club apples — varieties that are not just patented, but also trademarked and controlled in such a way that only a select "club" of farmers can sell them. Stemilt Growers LLC hide caption

itoggle caption Stemilt Growers LLC

Many artisan cheese producers never pasteurize their milk – it's raw. The milk's natural microbial community is still in there. This microbial festival gives cheese variety and intrigues scientists. iStockphoto hide caption

itoggle caption iStockphoto

The "Aroma R-evolution" kit comes with four forks and 21 vials full of aromas like olive oil, mint and smoke. You drop a dab of scented liquid onto the base of the fork, and the smell is supposed to subtly flavor the food you eat while using the utensil. Claire Eggers/NPR hide caption

itoggle caption Claire Eggers/NPR

Homeless advocate Arnold Abbott, 90, director of the nonprofit group Love Thy Neighbor Inc., prepares a salad Wednesday in the kitchen of The Sanctuary Church in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Abbott was recently arrested, along with two pastors, for feeding the homeless in a Fort Lauderdale park. Lynne Sladky/AP hide caption

itoggle caption Lynne Sladky/AP

Berkeley's efforts to pass a penny-per-ounce tax on sugary drinks faced opposition with deep pockets — but it also got sizable cash infusions from some big-name donors. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images hide caption

itoggle caption Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Supporters of efforts to label GMOs in foods turn out at a rally in Denverin 2013. A ballot measure that would such labels failed to pass by a wide margin Tuesday. Luke Runyon/KUNC/Harvest Public Media hide caption

itoggle caption Luke Runyon/KUNC/Harvest Public Media

Sunlight streams into a corn storage building at a Michlig Grain storage facility in Sheffield, Illinois, U.S., on Oct. 31, 2014. The price of corn has been falling for months. Daniel Acker/Bloomberg via Getty Images hide caption

itoggle caption Daniel Acker/Bloomberg via Getty Images