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Quote:

Originally Posted by phillygold (Post 34248173)

So, how about a smaller charity? Example: I served on the Board of a domestic violence charity here in PA. The charity had many missions, one of which was to operate a shelter for women and children. At any time there were one or two families in there. They welcomed donations of individual items to prepare communal dinners.

Many organizations in my area of PA have food pantries. They don't have corporate donors, but rely on private donations. So, while each person receiving a box of food that day may receive a box of pasta, a jar of sauce, etc., they won't all receive the same pasta or the same sauce. They would welcome donations of any sort of pasta sauce.

I have volunteered with Love Is Feeding Everyone as well as Project Angel Food. Of course they love the corporate donors and pallets of food but they also welcomed all donations, big or small as long as it was non-perishable. I used to stand outside a grocery store on weekends asking people to pick up an extra item or 2 and donate on the way out. At the end of the shift, a volunteer in a volunteered truck came by and picked up all the donations and took them to a local food charity---no cases, no pallets---just several shopping bags full of random food. I wouldn't assume that someone wouldn't want that pasta sauce.
And speaking of donations, tomorrow is the letter carrier's food drive. Leave non perishable food outside and they will collect it as part of their Stamp Out Hunger program. I bought a bag of stuff today but I am sure that most of us can find things in our pantry to donate. It is a nationwide drive.

Quote:

Originally Posted by gaobest (Post 34247962)

Does anyone else have burnout of pandemic food joys? Maybe just my family :-)

4 glass jars? One jar per client? They have hundreds of clients. When my family and I volunteered with My future in-laws at Marin food bank, every client gets the SAME THING per table which means that they have caseloads of things per session. Then the client goes to the next table. Each client is vetted with the food bank. My friend is a Ed at a food bank in San Carlos or somewhere in the peninsula and also wants pallets of individual items and not loose amounts of an item. Their donors are warehouses, not individuals. You worked in the food industry - do you really not know that food banks work on warehouse level and not retail level? These aren’t shops in San Francisco plus of course if they were shops then they’d probably get burgled :-)

One food bank's rules are far from a universal policy.

We contribute to 3 different ones in our community. If it's a non-perishable item not past its "Best By" date, they're delighted to have it, even if it is a single can of a particular item. People are hungry, even in the "nice" suburbs. Periodically I clean out the cupboards and come across things that are still well within their lifespan but time has shown we are unlikely to eat, so off to the food bank they go. One place is always grateful for gluten-free items as the demand for those far exceeds their supply.

Food banks are usually happy to take anything offered. The one I volunteered at in Maine (Preble Street) used large donations to assemble a box for each person, and then put other items on shelves for people to take as they wanted.

Canisters of Quaker Oats were absurdly popular.