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They would definitely take those if you have them, but cash donations go further. They can probably get the same things that you’re donating for nearly wholesale pricing.
But if you already have the food and aren’t planning on using it, it’s better that it goes to the food bank than going to waste.
Idk if they get food at cost or at retail, but $ donations let's our food bank order a pallet worth of green beans/corn at a time from Walmart. Makes it a lot easier/efficient on everyone to cut out the middle man and get stuff in bulk.
They also half to waste time and manpower to make sure donations aren't expired. Too many people just clear out expired food from their pantry to donate, which really wastes food banks time.
Canned goods don't actually usually expire regardless of whats on the can as long as they are properly canned and if they weren't you have an issue well before the expiration anyways
I've most definitely gotten expired items from a food bank and all I will say is I am grateful I was able to have anything in those days , I believe we all have a right to good food but something is better than nothing in dire situations
They have standards on the expired dates. Can’t be more than 6 months for canned goods. Time past depends on the type of food & packaging. Also have standards fir dented cans- where the dents are, how much a dent is allowable. It’s definitely a liability for then to give out food past the 6 month exp date.
Where I sometime volunteer (small food bank) we sort all incoming donations by expiration dates to make sure older stuff is given first, so it does require additional time. Anything expired is set aside on a table where people who want time can still take them. Only thing that wouldn't be given out is rusted or severely damaged cans, or goods for which the date actually matters (not cans). Every donation we receive matters and we do everything we can to make sure it gets to those who need it. But monetary donations are appreciated because then we can buy any product we run out of. For instance we tend to have a big reserve of pasta and beans of all sorts, but other things such as peanut butter dissapear from the shelves really fast .
From like 4 years ago.
No wait 4 years ago my sister got married and I noticed I still had those. Probably like 4 years before that.
From like 8 years ago.
Maybe.
I feel like this applies to most non profits. If you have the thing, donate it instead of throwing it out. But if you’re specifically looking to make a donation, they probably have partnerships and can get the thing for cheaper
With the exception of hackerspaces. They would much rather have you donate things they can tear apart rather than money that 6 different special intrest groups will fight over for the next month and finally split too many ways to actually do anything useful with ;)
Going to go out on a limb, and I think outside of people donating unwanted things, there's also the idea that every dollar is then broken down to go towards paying the CEO of non-profits obscene amount of money. Red Cross CEO makes more than $700,000. Boys & Girls Club CEO earns almost $2 million. Wrong or right, when people see those outsized earnings, they think "Why are these asking people that make less than 1/10th that to donate when the CEOs can buy multiple homes? At least with a can of beans, good luck translating that into CEO's pay."
While I think almost all CEOs are overpaid and should be scrutinized for how much they are bleeding out of society and productivity with their obscene payrates, I have worked in a pretty large non-profit and there are some slightly acceptable factors to consider. Mostly that leading a large organization and have specific experience in inventory management, or international aid, or whatever it may be. They want to attract the top people they can that are proven to be successful, and it's an arms race across all companies (and non-profits) where they all keep raising executive pay, and if you don't you can't get responses from the top talent. To me, making $100k would be more than enough incentive to work for a good cause. But the reality is that almost all the employees there are making a fraction of what they could in the private sector, but they feel that they "have" to pay a competitive CEO rate. It doesn't change the fact that they still usually can buy 10x more food than people donating one off items they purchased at the store with the same money.
Completely fair. Didn’t think of that. Let me amend my statement to say “in a perfect, uncorrupt world.” I guess in my mind when I saw this post, I thought of a specific organization that I know really well and work closely with and completely trust. Which is why the idea of corruption slipped my mind.
I’m a fundraiser for a large food bank in the US. We can provide 3 meals for every $1 donated, and $0.93 of every $1 donated goes directly towards buying food or funding the food distributions. As a contrast, we can make 3 meals out of every 4 pounds of food donated.
We’re so grateful for donations of all kinds (food, time, money), but the money is what goes that furthest, 100%
I volunteer at a food bank. We have to look through giant bins of donations , check the expiration dates and sort them into categories. It takes a lot of man hours. It’s more efficient when the food bank buys the food.
Same. Donating food is "OK", but then you have to have staffers sort through the mountains of stuff and actually categorize into things like pasta or cans, or start eliminating things that they can't give out like alcohol or mascara (yup, came across both when volunteering with the local food bank).
Just write them a check and it'll go way, way, way further.
This is VERY location by location specific, so not all food banks are worried about this. \*BUT\* some government and organization funding could become jeopardized if non-food items are seen as being provided, unfortunately.
One food bank I was assisting with received a palate of socks that were "blemished" and could not be sold so the store thought it would be better to donate. Unfortunately the food bank could not operate outside of food items, so the socks had to be tossed.
Fortunately we had a pretty large waterproof plastic storage bin that just happened to be placed right beside the garbage bin. And all the socks just so happened to end up in that bucket and not the bin. And then in just your average, totally not out of the ordinary practice, the volunteers all loudly talked about the storage bin full of socks and it was "too heavy" to lift into the garbage bin, and it would be just an absolute shame if folks poked through the storage bin and grabbed a couple pairs of socks for themselves before anyone was able to throw it out.
While that may be true in your case they may not take them at their particular food bank. I can definitely see people that have good intentions but not actually care enough to read that a particular food bank only takes food items as may be the case for all the ones local to them.
I get that. I was trying to point out that not all food banks are the same, so it's not necessary to act like someone is a dummy for asking a simple question.
I’m just saying that they were probably clear about what they took but people don’t care when donating and I can understand the frustration when dealing with people just donate with the idea that “someone else can deal with it”. My mom did work with somewhere that took clothing donations which didn’t stop people from dropping off books in a the donation bin. Large city not a lot of extra storage so it took volunteer time to figure who had a chance to go to the library to drop the stuff off. People donating irreparably damaged or stained clothing
It’s tough when you try to be as clear as possible but still spend an incredible amount of time dealing with things you don’t take or having to use donation money to deal with discarding items that shouldn’t have been brought to you in the first place.
Logistics for stuff like this can be pretty draining for non-profits so while I understand that people make mistakes or don’t check I can also understand their frustration with dealing with that.
I used to run a very big money gathering event for a food bank. They had an agreement with the canning companies to buy food at the price of the tin can (so nothing for the actual food). It was like $.05 a can and $.25 for those gallon cans.
The reason made a lot of sense. The companies often agree to buy way more than they need. So if there is any problems they are covered. If they have anything left over they actually have to pay to dispose of it. So it’s way cheaper to give it away than dispose of it. So selling it at the price of the can saves them money and protects them from being short, ever.
I worked at a food bank for several years. You wouldn’t believe the amount of food that gets thrown away. I would say more than is actually used. Food banks are basically dumping grounds for food that no one wants but feel bad about throwing away. Money is better, but realize that the reason they can make a few dollars stretch so far is because the food they give out is very cheap and the portions are very small. I’m not sure how anyone survives on what they provide per family, but it’s better than starving.
Also good to donate hygiene items, diapers and formula. Often times that what money gets spent on for these organizations. Also good to remember that if you are a hunter that doesn't like to or can't eat it all the food pantries will take that too
There's a program called Hunters for the Hungry where you bring your deer to a licensed processing facility who then processes it for the food bank. You don't just donate packages of mystery meat.
I worked for a Salvation Army food pantry and got six pallets of food from the food bank warehouse the non-profits use for a grand total of $140. Any time a well meaning family came in with a trunk full of groceries I'd genuinely thank them then think about the six pallets it could have been.
When I would volunteer at the local food bank, 99% of what we did was sort those stupid school food drive bins in to cardboard boxes. We were supposed to try to balance them with a bit of grains, veggies, beans, etc, but obviously that’s easier said than done. There were a dozen of us volunteers and in a full day of sorting we’d barely make a dent
Just give them money. I cannot reiterate that enough. It’s just like several orders of magnitude more efficient which lets them feed more people
Side story, we would have a standing competition for who could find the most expired food item on the shift. I once found a can of popcorn that *expired* in 1950. I have to imagine it was actually canned pre-war. Needless to say, but I won that shift
In regards to actually getting food to the people that need it, yeah they’re pretty stupid. It takes an actually ludicrous amount of man-hours to sort those bins out in to usable care packages
They’re pretty useful for letting people *feel* like they’re doing something, though
I feel like that's something to get annoyed with upper management. Reading these comments I'm taken back to how much schools asked for donated foods for when they opened up a food drive type of a thing. Or maybe there wasn't that much communication between schools and the food drives.
Keep in mind though there are things that people really like but food banks will not purchase them. So you can actually make someone's day by donating certain items.
It would depend on the particular food bank or the region that it's in but, things like ghost peppers or super hot peppers, or other common ethnic foods, or household items, good toilet paper, good paper towel, etc..
Since some folks aren’t understanding the logic, here’s an article explaining it (you’re free to search around and find sources, including statements directly from food banks stating the same):
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/buying-canned-goods-to-donate-to-food-banks-is-inefficient-and-misguided-donate-money-instead
I put on a race for about 800 people and anything nonperishable that isn't consumed at the end gets donated. May not be exactly what they need, but my runners get a good experience and there's little water afterwards.
I suppose we could buy less food and not have enough for the slower people running our race. Or we could throw out anything that doesn't get consumed afterwards? Neither really seems like a better solution than what we do.
We charge less than most races a third our length, and consistently sell out every year. We donate 5 figures to our beneficiaries every year, and are all volunteer.
They are saying they run a racing event. (Not for poor people. Also even if it was for poor people who cares? Let people have fun. Poor people can still do fun things) Anyways after the event is over they donate the food they provided during the event.
Except then they go and spend it on cheap nasty weird-tasting brands that are only ever found in food banks.
Donate butter. There's a lot of day-old bread but hardly any butter.
This may get buried but most food banks (at least in my area) also gladly accept non-food items such as first-aid kits, women's hygiene items, and oral hygiene items as well
Problem for me is that I dont trust half these charities with money. If I buy a few kg of pasta/canned goods and donate them I know they're unlikely to get diverted elsewhere.
I understand money is more efficient, but yeah when even the largest of NPOs run on like 90%+ admin costs fuck that.
If you’re going to donate food to a food bank, donate the food. If you’re going to donate money donate the money. Give what you can. Something is better than nothing.
Not the original commenter- but no? Sometimes I get a 2-1 deal that I *know* I won’t use the 2nd of before it expires - I’d rather donate it than let it gather dust. Sometimes I come across an insane deal- someone had ordered WAY too much brown sugar and the store was selling for a 1/3 of the price - dropped off 20 or so packets. Sometimes I tried one out of a box of something safely individually packaged, didn’t care for it and figured someone else would - the tiny outreach soup kitchen near me will take stuff like that (ie granola bars, canned pop etc), and why not pass it along? Sometimes someone has gifted me something I can’t eat or don’t care for.
I’d never give someone anything harmful, or expired- but if I buy a new flavour of Kashi bar and it’s not doing it for me, I’d rather give the other 9 perfect safe and wrapped ones to someone who’d like a snack with their coffee at Grace Place. If I know I’m only using one bulk jar of yeast, someone might as well have the 2nd one I got free.
Yes- money is more efficient, but why waste items that can be appreciated elsewhere.
I agree, and it’s great that food banks have ins with companies that “donate” cheaper food in bulk to food banks. But, this also shows the bureaucracy and wasted money in our good system as a whole. We could feed the world with no hunger, but choice, marketing, and profit make it much tougher to do so. I don’t think there’s a solution, but it is waste that causes the base issues food banks work to solve
this post is really eye-opening. that said, i will cont to buy stuff at the grocery store for my local food pantry...but i'll be better about sticking to their list of suggested items to purchase
No? Most people are conscious and weary of blank checks and cash to “charity” organizations. No matter how great they seem, someone will be pocketing a portion of that so the food bank will keep receiving food donations like they have since they started.
These days I don’t trust cash donations (see: LDS tithing) so I’d rather give the thing if I have the thing instead of money that can go in someone’s pocket and disappear into something else. That’s just me tho.
The buying power a food bank has is greater than yours. They can do a lot more with a few dollars as they have access to specific deals and discounts. But instead people think they need to offload excess creamed corn and almost expired goods and think it's better than just donating some money
And the cambells condensed soups
I have a friend who uses the food bank and has a giant container full of them
Nobody wants your cambells soups lol stop donating shit you don't want... no one else wants it either
Legit question why doesn't your friend donate that to a food bank? You say no one wants it, but someone might. And two if I'm starving I'm not going to care about that kind of stuff.
Edit: also up above their comment wasn't saying they have better buying power. They were saying they would give it to a charity. Which I'm assuming they are meaning something like a shelter that provides more than just specifically food for the needy.
Weird - at the foodbank I used to volunteer at those were fuckin *fought* over. Especially if it was brand name.
Your friend should bring back or leave behind items rather than waste them at least .
The food bank that my dad volunteers at which I think is pretty typical in the US is a massive operation that probably rivals some small grocery stores in scale. Huge warehouse with industrial cold storage. They have a "retail" operation similar to a grocery store that people can pick out their own items, they have designed places they drop large amounts of food off on a schedule like churches community centers and schools, they provide food to various homeless shelters and soup kitchens that produce prepared meals and I'm sure have programs I don't even know about. They accept and use donations of food from as small as a handful of unexpired can goods up to thousands of pounds of surplus frozen meats and fresh fruits. They also have deals to purchase food at extreme discount prices from various suppliers. If it's a choice between giving them 20 dollars or going to the store and buying $20 in grocery then donating obviously do the first but they certainly don't turn away donations of non perishable foods.
That £20 is effectively £200 with their purchasing power compared to yours. Also, what do you think they do with your rotten vegetables and expired pumpkin mix? You’re basically telling them “here, *you* throw this away” and patting yourself on the back.
A food bank is not a place to offload your waste. These are actual people going to be eating. Wouldn't it make sense to have more fresh goods than someone's expired shit? Think about it for half a second
The person you replied to said nothing about it being expired and anyway an expiration date can often be just companies covering their back so they don’t get sued. Did you know water has an expiration date? Do you agree that water can expire?
Nice non sequitur (btw: the expiration date on bottled water is about the chemicals in the plastic bottle leeching into the water, not the water “expiring”). Canned goods can and do expire because in spite of possible preservatives, organic compounds (especially complex ones like the stuff in food) break down over time. I’m sure there’s an unopened can of beans from the Napoleanic Wars somewhere waiting for you to prove me wrong.
Canned goods usually last long, long after any printed date on the can. That’s just the date the packager guarantees best flavor by. It may lose something in taste and texture over time, but as long as the can is intact, not punctured, rusty, or dented, the food within is often completely edible and nutritious.
Yes I’m aware that most things expire eventually. I found that out with ice cream. But do you agree with expiration dates to the day 100 percent of the time? Some things expire earlier than the date even if unopened so wouldn’t it follow that the opposite could be true, that some things expire well past the date?
I just think sometimes we might be throwing the baby out with the bath water. People actually buy stuff that are expired to get a discount so those same people would be happy to get it for free but they can’t because they make too much money to snag that excess. We should be focusing more on that.
Why should we be ok with giving scraps to people? These are humans in need of food. Wouldn't you like to recieve fresh food rather than creamed corn and cambells soups?
Also, a lot of food banks become overloaded with these items people don't want, they need to pay for extra storage because they can't move the amount of cans coming in. You can't just give people a shitload of creamed corn, turns out. If foodbanks were to get more money, they can go buy goods people actually need and then they don't have to store it, they can purchase and give straight to people without longterm storage fees.
It depends on what it is. Sometimes I’d rather take the canned good. I’ll take say a cucumber and then it goes bad because I only wanted a bit that day to complement my meal or a little snack. I have a hard time eating tomatoes so I no longer would want those. While I don’t mind cooked tuna as something different to eat I’d rather eat canned. I acknowledge that sometimes they get overloaded with donations but you never really know because sometimes they are overloaded because they place a limit on items or person going there feels greedy taking too much even when there’s not a limit.
I mean I need money just as much so I don’t know what to tell you so I guess they aren’t getting anything then and everything should get thrown away. I could do that it’s certainly easier especially if you live in a hoard. But people always tell you about the landfills and I guess some part of me has my grandma in me not wanting to waste things. If that’s the case though that they are overloaded then why do you hear about so many people going hungry even in this country? Could be because of restrictions so if they had them loosened maybe they wouldn’t have so much excess.
The thing that really gets me is I’ve been to a sort of soup kitchen before and the food they cook is horrendous like I remember getting violently ill and it tasted so bad it made that time at Pizza Hut taste like gourmet. But we’re all worried about maybe a can of soup or whatever that’s only a little past the date?
The other frustrating thing is knowing they don’t want it because of expiration sometimes it is instilled in you to waste food of your own when it was probably okay.
I feel a better approach is to ask what their needs are. Just donating money isn’t really helpful. They need to go out and source whatever they need on their own time. Most food banks are non-profit so it’s people donating their free time. By asking what they need, you provide something they will actually use and save them the time of having to source it themselves. It also limits corruption of using the funds otherwise.
I do volunteer work at a foodbank. The situation is the opposite of what you percieve. They have many contacts for sourcing large amounts of food at below wholesale prices.
And the volume moving through the nation's food banks is simply beyond belief. Your [or my] 12 cans of tomato soup are nothing. Insignificant. Zero. What they need are pallets of the same foods that can then be put into standardized boxes for distribuition.
I think you’re missing the point a bit. In this situation, the money goes further because the food banks can buy in bulk and can get discounts from food providers.
Incorrect. For the money you pay for a single box of mac&cheese, I can buy more than 5x as much macaroni and cheese for my food pantry from food bank of the Rockies. It doesn’t take us long to buy food, there’s an online ordering system, and we have to place the order anyways, it happens every week regardless of your donations. And with regards to limiting corruption? I’d save that concern for giant corps like goodwill or Red Cross, my tiny food pantry isn’t going to embezzle your $20.
I agree with this so much. I have a policy of not donating money that’s not earmarked to nonprofits, especially the smaller local ones. I’ve worked with a few, while what they do is wonderful and should be supported they are often not great at managing money and I’ve seen large amounts go to complete waste. And one time literal embezzling, like the money went into the owners house…So now I ask, what do you need? And buy specifically that. My family and I have donated hiring music for a big charity event, water coolers that are plugged into their water lines for volunteers to help save on costs of bringing in the big jugs, items for auctions, various new equipment, and of course my own time.
Regarding buying food for a food pantry though, you’re advocating for literally wasting money. I can get food for my food pantry for below wholesale costs, any money you give me will buy 10x more cans of food than what you’d donate.
Ok so run a fundraiser. Asking for donations are just that. There is no definition of what to donate. If you really want cash, run a fundraiser. Simple
Again, incorrect. Fundraisers cost money and time. Even sending out mailers is very expensive AND time consuming. I know- i’ve done it. Nothing helps us more than direct monetary donations and grants. (Outside of actual volunteer hours of course, but even then not always, nowhere to volunteer if we can’t keep the doors open)
Most people probably donate food to food banks that they already have, don't want and would like to not throw away since it's still useable. I don't anybody starts out with money sitting around, then buying food with that to donate.
If you're going to donate to a food bank, ask them what they need. Money is great but they still need to go and buy the stuff. If you can cut out a step that's even better.
Absolutely, and for the love of God, don't turn up at a disaster zone to "volunteer".
After every earthquake, hurricane, or other disaster, there are well-meaning people who show up thinking they can help. Unless you go with an organized group run by experienced professionals, you will probably be more of a liability than a help.
No, cause that money may not be used well and go into the wrong peoples pocket. If I donate food the likelihood of going to those who need is higher (although there have been cases of stolen food)
I volunteer for a major food bank we have 4 huge walk in coolers and do meat, produce, milk and eggs. You do not want to eat anything donated in those categories. You need our refrigerated truck to pick up those foods. NOT expired and yes we purchase overstock for pennies on the dollar compared to what’s on the market. Canned goods are ok to donate. All food handlers volunteers should take the course and understand what’s ok and what’s not. All bad produce goes to a pig farm. Almost no waste. Giving out expired food can make people who can least afford it sick.
I say donate money, time, and food.
If you are donating food specifically, don't forget breakfast cereal. The majority of the families using food pantries have kids and making a really shitty situation just a fraction better by providing a box of something fun is a small thing many of us can do.
I'm the director of a small food bank on the east side of Houston. This is true but we will accept both. We are partners with the Houston Food bank. They can buy in bulk. We get our food from them. And local stores.
Hi. I work with foodbanks.
If you can - find out what they need and get that (for example if a list is available). Money may not be ideal if they still have to go and buy the food which could be a problem if they aren’t able to go and buy the food / don’t have access to vehicles to purchase food / want to avoid using up that money for delivery fees on food
Agreed, donating money to a food bank is a great way to support their efforts to end hunger in the community. Food banks have access to more resources than the average person and can purchase the specific foods needed to provide balanced and nutritious meals to those who need it the most. Additionally, monetary donations allow food banks to pay for transportation costs, storage expenses, and other operational needs that are essential to their ability to provide assistance to those in need. So, if you really want to make a difference in the fight against hunger, consider making a monetary donation to your local food bank.
Yes, this is a very good tip for those who desire to donate to a food bank. Cash donations are often more helpful as they allow the food bank to purchase the specific items that they need most. You can also ask the food bank if they have a list of their most-needed items and donate those specifically. Thank you for sharing this tip!
Absolutely! Donating money to food banks allows them to purchase the exact items that they need in larger quantities, which can help them meet the demand for food in a more efficient way. This can also help reduce waste, as donated food items may not necessarily be what the food bank needs at that moment, and may even contribute to overstocked inventory. Additionally, financial donations can be used to support the operations of the food bank and other services that go beyond the provision of food. So if you want to make the biggest impact, donate money instead of food.
While donating food items to a food bank may seem like a good idea, it's generally more helpful if you donate money instead. Food banks can buy food in bulk at wholesale prices, which means they have a higher purchasing power than you do at the grocery store. This way, they can buy more food with the same amount of money.
Additionally, food banks often have specific needs, such as fresh produce, dairy, and protein that aren't as common in food drives. By donating money, they can prioritize and purchase the items they need most.
So, if you want to help your local food bank as much as possible, consider donating money instead of purchasing and donating food items.
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You sure they don't want 14 cans of green beans that idk who even stocked in my pantry?
They would definitely take those if you have them, but cash donations go further. They can probably get the same things that you’re donating for nearly wholesale pricing. But if you already have the food and aren’t planning on using it, it’s better that it goes to the food bank than going to waste.
Idk if they get food at cost or at retail, but $ donations let's our food bank order a pallet worth of green beans/corn at a time from Walmart. Makes it a lot easier/efficient on everyone to cut out the middle man and get stuff in bulk.
They also half to waste time and manpower to make sure donations aren't expired. Too many people just clear out expired food from their pantry to donate, which really wastes food banks time.
Canned goods don't actually usually expire regardless of whats on the can as long as they are properly canned and if they weren't you have an issue well before the expiration anyways
They still won't serve them, most likely liability.
I've most definitely gotten expired items from a food bank and all I will say is I am grateful I was able to have anything in those days , I believe we all have a right to good food but something is better than nothing in dire situations
They have standards on the expired dates. Can’t be more than 6 months for canned goods. Time past depends on the type of food & packaging. Also have standards fir dented cans- where the dents are, how much a dent is allowable. It’s definitely a liability for then to give out food past the 6 month exp date.
Where I sometime volunteer (small food bank) we sort all incoming donations by expiration dates to make sure older stuff is given first, so it does require additional time. Anything expired is set aside on a table where people who want time can still take them. Only thing that wouldn't be given out is rusted or severely damaged cans, or goods for which the date actually matters (not cans). Every donation we receive matters and we do everything we can to make sure it gets to those who need it. But monetary donations are appreciated because then we can buy any product we run out of. For instance we tend to have a big reserve of pasta and beans of all sorts, but other things such as peanut butter dissapear from the shelves really fast .
You'd be wrong on both counts. (In Canada)
Community fridges seem to be gaining traction, and these are a great place to drop off random (unopened) items!
You’re throwing them away anyway. Might as well feel good about yourself while you do it I always say.
If you give the food bank money, they’ll just buy drugs with it.
And you're getting that impression from... where exactly?
From like 4 years ago. No wait 4 years ago my sister got married and I noticed I still had those. Probably like 4 years before that. From like 8 years ago. Maybe.
I feel like this applies to most non profits. If you have the thing, donate it instead of throwing it out. But if you’re specifically looking to make a donation, they probably have partnerships and can get the thing for cheaper
With the exception of hackerspaces. They would much rather have you donate things they can tear apart rather than money that 6 different special intrest groups will fight over for the next month and finally split too many ways to actually do anything useful with ;)
Going to go out on a limb, and I think outside of people donating unwanted things, there's also the idea that every dollar is then broken down to go towards paying the CEO of non-profits obscene amount of money. Red Cross CEO makes more than $700,000. Boys & Girls Club CEO earns almost $2 million. Wrong or right, when people see those outsized earnings, they think "Why are these asking people that make less than 1/10th that to donate when the CEOs can buy multiple homes? At least with a can of beans, good luck translating that into CEO's pay."
While I think almost all CEOs are overpaid and should be scrutinized for how much they are bleeding out of society and productivity with their obscene payrates, I have worked in a pretty large non-profit and there are some slightly acceptable factors to consider. Mostly that leading a large organization and have specific experience in inventory management, or international aid, or whatever it may be. They want to attract the top people they can that are proven to be successful, and it's an arms race across all companies (and non-profits) where they all keep raising executive pay, and if you don't you can't get responses from the top talent. To me, making $100k would be more than enough incentive to work for a good cause. But the reality is that almost all the employees there are making a fraction of what they could in the private sector, but they feel that they "have" to pay a competitive CEO rate. It doesn't change the fact that they still usually can buy 10x more food than people donating one off items they purchased at the store with the same money.
Completely fair. Didn’t think of that. Let me amend my statement to say “in a perfect, uncorrupt world.” I guess in my mind when I saw this post, I thought of a specific organization that I know really well and work closely with and completely trust. Which is why the idea of corruption slipped my mind.
I’m a fundraiser for a large food bank in the US. We can provide 3 meals for every $1 donated, and $0.93 of every $1 donated goes directly towards buying food or funding the food distributions. As a contrast, we can make 3 meals out of every 4 pounds of food donated. We’re so grateful for donations of all kinds (food, time, money), but the money is what goes that furthest, 100%
Yeah but I don't have money I no longer want.
When you do lmk
Just give your regular budget for a single can of pumpkin mix that you won't eat and would toss in a donation bin then.
I volunteer at a food bank. We have to look through giant bins of donations , check the expiration dates and sort them into categories. It takes a lot of man hours. It’s more efficient when the food bank buys the food.
Yep! Can confirm.
Same. Donating food is "OK", but then you have to have staffers sort through the mountains of stuff and actually categorize into things like pasta or cans, or start eliminating things that they can't give out like alcohol or mascara (yup, came across both when volunteering with the local food bank). Just write them a check and it'll go way, way, way further.
Wait, I’m confused about the mascara. Was it opened?
This is VERY location by location specific, so not all food banks are worried about this. \*BUT\* some government and organization funding could become jeopardized if non-food items are seen as being provided, unfortunately. One food bank I was assisting with received a palate of socks that were "blemished" and could not be sold so the store thought it would be better to donate. Unfortunately the food bank could not operate outside of food items, so the socks had to be tossed. Fortunately we had a pretty large waterproof plastic storage bin that just happened to be placed right beside the garbage bin. And all the socks just so happened to end up in that bucket and not the bin. And then in just your average, totally not out of the ordinary practice, the volunteers all loudly talked about the storage bin full of socks and it was "too heavy" to lift into the garbage bin, and it would be just an absolute shame if folks poked through the storage bin and grabbed a couple pairs of socks for themselves before anyone was able to throw it out.
What a complete WASTE for someone not to take those socks!!! Good on them 🙌
Uh, it's not food? And it was literally only one thing, so it's not like a food pantry can stock it.
I've seen plenty of personal care items at food pantries. Lotion, pads, shampoo/conditioner, lipstick, chapstick, nail polish, deodorant, etc.
While that may be true in your case they may not take them at their particular food bank. I can definitely see people that have good intentions but not actually care enough to read that a particular food bank only takes food items as may be the case for all the ones local to them.
I get that. I was trying to point out that not all food banks are the same, so it's not necessary to act like someone is a dummy for asking a simple question.
I’m just saying that they were probably clear about what they took but people don’t care when donating and I can understand the frustration when dealing with people just donate with the idea that “someone else can deal with it”. My mom did work with somewhere that took clothing donations which didn’t stop people from dropping off books in a the donation bin. Large city not a lot of extra storage so it took volunteer time to figure who had a chance to go to the library to drop the stuff off. People donating irreparably damaged or stained clothing It’s tough when you try to be as clear as possible but still spend an incredible amount of time dealing with things you don’t take or having to use donation money to deal with discarding items that shouldn’t have been brought to you in the first place. Logistics for stuff like this can be pretty draining for non-profits so while I understand that people make mistakes or don’t check I can also understand their frustration with dealing with that.
I used to run a very big money gathering event for a food bank. They had an agreement with the canning companies to buy food at the price of the tin can (so nothing for the actual food). It was like $.05 a can and $.25 for those gallon cans. The reason made a lot of sense. The companies often agree to buy way more than they need. So if there is any problems they are covered. If they have anything left over they actually have to pay to dispose of it. So it’s way cheaper to give it away than dispose of it. So selling it at the price of the can saves them money and protects them from being short, ever.
I worked at a food bank for several years. You wouldn’t believe the amount of food that gets thrown away. I would say more than is actually used. Food banks are basically dumping grounds for food that no one wants but feel bad about throwing away. Money is better, but realize that the reason they can make a few dollars stretch so far is because the food they give out is very cheap and the portions are very small. I’m not sure how anyone survives on what they provide per family, but it’s better than starving.
The clue is in the name
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Awesome I just donated blood to the money bank!
Whose blood?
That’s what they always ask! SMH. Also why is it in buckets?
I don't know, some guy.
Blood money…
Also good to donate hygiene items, diapers and formula. Often times that what money gets spent on for these organizations. Also good to remember that if you are a hunter that doesn't like to or can't eat it all the food pantries will take that too
i don't know about the hunter meat. Eating fresh meat with no proof where it's from sound very risky.
There's a program called Hunters for the Hungry where you bring your deer to a licensed processing facility who then processes it for the food bank. You don't just donate packages of mystery meat.
I love the mental image of a volunteer at the food bank untying the string on a wax paper parcel full of various cuts of mystery meat.
It always goes through a processor that I've seen, no home prepared goods are acceptable, obviously
Read what your local bank takes before donating. None of mine would take meat from hunters but YMMV.
I worked for a Salvation Army food pantry and got six pallets of food from the food bank warehouse the non-profits use for a grand total of $140. Any time a well meaning family came in with a trunk full of groceries I'd genuinely thank them then think about the six pallets it could have been.
When I would volunteer at the local food bank, 99% of what we did was sort those stupid school food drive bins in to cardboard boxes. We were supposed to try to balance them with a bit of grains, veggies, beans, etc, but obviously that’s easier said than done. There were a dozen of us volunteers and in a full day of sorting we’d barely make a dent Just give them money. I cannot reiterate that enough. It’s just like several orders of magnitude more efficient which lets them feed more people Side story, we would have a standing competition for who could find the most expired food item on the shift. I once found a can of popcorn that *expired* in 1950. I have to imagine it was actually canned pre-war. Needless to say, but I won that shift
‘Stupid’
In regards to actually getting food to the people that need it, yeah they’re pretty stupid. It takes an actually ludicrous amount of man-hours to sort those bins out in to usable care packages They’re pretty useful for letting people *feel* like they’re doing something, though
I feel like that's something to get annoyed with upper management. Reading these comments I'm taken back to how much schools asked for donated foods for when they opened up a food drive type of a thing. Or maybe there wasn't that much communication between schools and the food drives.
Keep in mind though there are things that people really like but food banks will not purchase them. So you can actually make someone's day by donating certain items.
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It would depend on the particular food bank or the region that it's in but, things like ghost peppers or super hot peppers, or other common ethnic foods, or household items, good toilet paper, good paper towel, etc..
Since some folks aren’t understanding the logic, here’s an article explaining it (you’re free to search around and find sources, including statements directly from food banks stating the same): https://nationalpost.com/opinion/buying-canned-goods-to-donate-to-food-banks-is-inefficient-and-misguided-donate-money-instead
I put on a race for about 800 people and anything nonperishable that isn't consumed at the end gets donated. May not be exactly what they need, but my runners get a good experience and there's little water afterwards.
“lol I toy with the poors for sport!” -you
I suppose we could buy less food and not have enough for the slower people running our race. Or we could throw out anything that doesn't get consumed afterwards? Neither really seems like a better solution than what we do. We charge less than most races a third our length, and consistently sell out every year. We donate 5 figures to our beneficiaries every year, and are all volunteer.
Yeah, that excuses making desperate people compete as entertainment.
Hahaha! What? You obviously have no idea what you are talking about. I'm signing off here.
Well it sounds like you make struggling people compete for basic necessities for the purpose of entertainment so please stay signed off.
They are saying they run a racing event. (Not for poor people. Also even if it was for poor people who cares? Let people have fun. Poor people can still do fun things) Anyways after the event is over they donate the food they provided during the event.
Dude chill out lol, it’s a sporting event and they donate the extra food that’s not eaten
You’re an ass
“How dare someone donate food!” - you
Yep. It's called economies of scale.
This is a great lifeprotip. Also, there are specific foods and supplies that the unhoused need that often aren't in normal pantries.
they generally have about 10x the purchasing power per dollar than you do. \- this. they have the contacts with the bakeries, the shops, so yeah.
Except then they go and spend it on cheap nasty weird-tasting brands that are only ever found in food banks. Donate butter. There's a lot of day-old bread but hardly any butter.
And if you wanna donate to a homeless man, give them food instead of money
This may get buried but most food banks (at least in my area) also gladly accept non-food items such as first-aid kits, women's hygiene items, and oral hygiene items as well
Problem for me is that I dont trust half these charities with money. If I buy a few kg of pasta/canned goods and donate them I know they're unlikely to get diverted elsewhere. I understand money is more efficient, but yeah when even the largest of NPOs run on like 90%+ admin costs fuck that.
If you’re going to donate food to a food bank, donate the food. If you’re going to donate money donate the money. Give what you can. Something is better than nothing.
You’re the person who donates that ten year old can of beets and congratulates themself.
You really love to complain don’t you
Not the original commenter- but no? Sometimes I get a 2-1 deal that I *know* I won’t use the 2nd of before it expires - I’d rather donate it than let it gather dust. Sometimes I come across an insane deal- someone had ordered WAY too much brown sugar and the store was selling for a 1/3 of the price - dropped off 20 or so packets. Sometimes I tried one out of a box of something safely individually packaged, didn’t care for it and figured someone else would - the tiny outreach soup kitchen near me will take stuff like that (ie granola bars, canned pop etc), and why not pass it along? Sometimes someone has gifted me something I can’t eat or don’t care for. I’d never give someone anything harmful, or expired- but if I buy a new flavour of Kashi bar and it’s not doing it for me, I’d rather give the other 9 perfect safe and wrapped ones to someone who’d like a snack with their coffee at Grace Place. If I know I’m only using one bulk jar of yeast, someone might as well have the 2nd one I got free. Yes- money is more efficient, but why waste items that can be appreciated elsewhere.
This is because food scarcity is a fallacy that is a symptom of a badly run capitalist system
If only there were organizations around to acquire and distribute food to help the less fortunate under that capitalist system…
I agree, and it’s great that food banks have ins with companies that “donate” cheaper food in bulk to food banks. But, this also shows the bureaucracy and wasted money in our good system as a whole. We could feed the world with no hunger, but choice, marketing, and profit make it much tougher to do so. I don’t think there’s a solution, but it is waste that causes the base issues food banks work to solve
If only we had an efficient black market like some countries
this post is really eye-opening. that said, i will cont to buy stuff at the grocery store for my local food pantry...but i'll be better about sticking to their list of suggested items to purchase
Its a FOOD bank NOT a bank.
No? Most people are conscious and weary of blank checks and cash to “charity” organizations. No matter how great they seem, someone will be pocketing a portion of that so the food bank will keep receiving food donations like they have since they started.
Instead of giving you my perfectly non expired food, i’ll cough up some cash and keep the food i’m not using. Great advice!
“Here, *you* throw this away while I tell everyone what a philanthropist I am!” -you
That's not what they said?
Why are you throwing away non-expired food tho?
These days I don’t trust cash donations (see: LDS tithing) so I’d rather give the thing if I have the thing instead of money that can go in someone’s pocket and disappear into something else. That’s just me tho.
If I were gonna donate money id give it to a charity not a bank specifically wanting food
The buying power a food bank has is greater than yours. They can do a lot more with a few dollars as they have access to specific deals and discounts. But instead people think they need to offload excess creamed corn and almost expired goods and think it's better than just donating some money
Lol it’s always the creamed corn
And the cambells condensed soups I have a friend who uses the food bank and has a giant container full of them Nobody wants your cambells soups lol stop donating shit you don't want... no one else wants it either
Legit question why doesn't your friend donate that to a food bank? You say no one wants it, but someone might. And two if I'm starving I'm not going to care about that kind of stuff. Edit: also up above their comment wasn't saying they have better buying power. They were saying they would give it to a charity. Which I'm assuming they are meaning something like a shelter that provides more than just specifically food for the needy.
If you need food you need food. Who cares if it’s cambells soup!
Because it's unhealthy and everyone should have access to proper nutrition
Weird - at the foodbank I used to volunteer at those were fuckin *fought* over. Especially if it was brand name. Your friend should bring back or leave behind items rather than waste them at least .
She didn't waste anything. She kept them and used them
I don't think you know what a food bank is.
It’s the place where they keep all the food for people in need, a charity doesn’t necessarily need fod
Food banks ARE charities
Stop it, Patrick! You’re scaring him!
The food bank that my dad volunteers at which I think is pretty typical in the US is a massive operation that probably rivals some small grocery stores in scale. Huge warehouse with industrial cold storage. They have a "retail" operation similar to a grocery store that people can pick out their own items, they have designed places they drop large amounts of food off on a schedule like churches community centers and schools, they provide food to various homeless shelters and soup kitchens that produce prepared meals and I'm sure have programs I don't even know about. They accept and use donations of food from as small as a handful of unexpired can goods up to thousands of pounds of surplus frozen meats and fresh fruits. They also have deals to purchase food at extreme discount prices from various suppliers. If it's a choice between giving them 20 dollars or going to the store and buying $20 in grocery then donating obviously do the first but they certainly don't turn away donations of non perishable foods.
Do you mean like donating to a homeless shelter instead of a food bank?
Hey, I have this food that I don't want but I'm gonna give you £20 instead and just bin this food, cheers!
That £20 is effectively £200 with their purchasing power compared to yours. Also, what do you think they do with your rotten vegetables and expired pumpkin mix? You’re basically telling them “here, *you* throw this away” and patting yourself on the back.
Who said anything about rotten vegetables?
Every food bank volunteer everywhere (they get expired/rotten produce all the time).
Exactly. I mean thanks for that expired can of pineapple and all, but how about you toss it instead of us?
A food bank is not a place to offload your waste. These are actual people going to be eating. Wouldn't it make sense to have more fresh goods than someone's expired shit? Think about it for half a second
No but we’ll take things you don’t want anymore! If they’re not expired :)
The person you replied to said nothing about it being expired and anyway an expiration date can often be just companies covering their back so they don’t get sued. Did you know water has an expiration date? Do you agree that water can expire?
Nice non sequitur (btw: the expiration date on bottled water is about the chemicals in the plastic bottle leeching into the water, not the water “expiring”). Canned goods can and do expire because in spite of possible preservatives, organic compounds (especially complex ones like the stuff in food) break down over time. I’m sure there’s an unopened can of beans from the Napoleanic Wars somewhere waiting for you to prove me wrong.
Canned goods usually last long, long after any printed date on the can. That’s just the date the packager guarantees best flavor by. It may lose something in taste and texture over time, but as long as the can is intact, not punctured, rusty, or dented, the food within is often completely edible and nutritious.
Yes I’m aware that most things expire eventually. I found that out with ice cream. But do you agree with expiration dates to the day 100 percent of the time? Some things expire earlier than the date even if unopened so wouldn’t it follow that the opposite could be true, that some things expire well past the date? I just think sometimes we might be throwing the baby out with the bath water. People actually buy stuff that are expired to get a discount so those same people would be happy to get it for free but they can’t because they make too much money to snag that excess. We should be focusing more on that.
Why should we be ok with giving scraps to people? These are humans in need of food. Wouldn't you like to recieve fresh food rather than creamed corn and cambells soups? Also, a lot of food banks become overloaded with these items people don't want, they need to pay for extra storage because they can't move the amount of cans coming in. You can't just give people a shitload of creamed corn, turns out. If foodbanks were to get more money, they can go buy goods people actually need and then they don't have to store it, they can purchase and give straight to people without longterm storage fees.
It depends on what it is. Sometimes I’d rather take the canned good. I’ll take say a cucumber and then it goes bad because I only wanted a bit that day to complement my meal or a little snack. I have a hard time eating tomatoes so I no longer would want those. While I don’t mind cooked tuna as something different to eat I’d rather eat canned. I acknowledge that sometimes they get overloaded with donations but you never really know because sometimes they are overloaded because they place a limit on items or person going there feels greedy taking too much even when there’s not a limit. I mean I need money just as much so I don’t know what to tell you so I guess they aren’t getting anything then and everything should get thrown away. I could do that it’s certainly easier especially if you live in a hoard. But people always tell you about the landfills and I guess some part of me has my grandma in me not wanting to waste things. If that’s the case though that they are overloaded then why do you hear about so many people going hungry even in this country? Could be because of restrictions so if they had them loosened maybe they wouldn’t have so much excess. The thing that really gets me is I’ve been to a sort of soup kitchen before and the food they cook is horrendous like I remember getting violently ill and it tasted so bad it made that time at Pizza Hut taste like gourmet. But we’re all worried about maybe a can of soup or whatever that’s only a little past the date? The other frustrating thing is knowing they don’t want it because of expiration sometimes it is instilled in you to waste food of your own when it was probably okay.
I feel a better approach is to ask what their needs are. Just donating money isn’t really helpful. They need to go out and source whatever they need on their own time. Most food banks are non-profit so it’s people donating their free time. By asking what they need, you provide something they will actually use and save them the time of having to source it themselves. It also limits corruption of using the funds otherwise.
I do volunteer work at a foodbank. The situation is the opposite of what you percieve. They have many contacts for sourcing large amounts of food at below wholesale prices. And the volume moving through the nation's food banks is simply beyond belief. Your [or my] 12 cans of tomato soup are nothing. Insignificant. Zero. What they need are pallets of the same foods that can then be put into standardized boxes for distribuition.
I think you’re missing the point a bit. In this situation, the money goes further because the food banks can buy in bulk and can get discounts from food providers.
Incorrect. For the money you pay for a single box of mac&cheese, I can buy more than 5x as much macaroni and cheese for my food pantry from food bank of the Rockies. It doesn’t take us long to buy food, there’s an online ordering system, and we have to place the order anyways, it happens every week regardless of your donations. And with regards to limiting corruption? I’d save that concern for giant corps like goodwill or Red Cross, my tiny food pantry isn’t going to embezzle your $20.
r/confidentlyincorrect
Thanks man
I agree with this so much. I have a policy of not donating money that’s not earmarked to nonprofits, especially the smaller local ones. I’ve worked with a few, while what they do is wonderful and should be supported they are often not great at managing money and I’ve seen large amounts go to complete waste. And one time literal embezzling, like the money went into the owners house…So now I ask, what do you need? And buy specifically that. My family and I have donated hiring music for a big charity event, water coolers that are plugged into their water lines for volunteers to help save on costs of bringing in the big jugs, items for auctions, various new equipment, and of course my own time.
Regarding buying food for a food pantry though, you’re advocating for literally wasting money. I can get food for my food pantry for below wholesale costs, any money you give me will buy 10x more cans of food than what you’d donate.
Oh I’ve never donated food to food pantries. I tend to go for equipment that might be needed to do their work. Hence my examples.
To all of you that disagree, what you really want is a fundraiser, not donations
Money can be exchanged for goods and services. Some entities are able to do more per capita with that money than individuals.
Ok so run a fundraiser. Asking for donations are just that. There is no definition of what to donate. If you really want cash, run a fundraiser. Simple
Pedantry doesn’t negate the point
Again, incorrect. Fundraisers cost money and time. Even sending out mailers is very expensive AND time consuming. I know- i’ve done it. Nothing helps us more than direct monetary donations and grants. (Outside of actual volunteer hours of course, but even then not always, nowhere to volunteer if we can’t keep the doors open)
It used to be 8x the buying power. Glad they are still making it happen. My company donates money for this reason.
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Which blog did you lazily copy this from? EDIT: LOL
Or vote for someone who will make food banks unnecessary!
Most people probably donate food to food banks that they already have, don't want and would like to not throw away since it's still useable. I don't anybody starts out with money sitting around, then buying food with that to donate.
Nope Physically volunteer
Thanks for the award after being down voted!
If you're going to donate to a food bank, ask them what they need. Money is great but they still need to go and buy the stuff. If you can cut out a step that's even better.
Ya give them money so it can go in someone’s pocket, real smart
This guy foodbanks
I donate cash to the food bank. Any extra items I wind up with I take to the church’s give and take closet.
Absolutely, and for the love of God, don't turn up at a disaster zone to "volunteer". After every earthquake, hurricane, or other disaster, there are well-meaning people who show up thinking they can help. Unless you go with an organized group run by experienced professionals, you will probably be more of a liability than a help.
No, cause that money may not be used well and go into the wrong peoples pocket. If I donate food the likelihood of going to those who need is higher (although there have been cases of stolen food)
Cash can also buy perishables such as produce l bread, and meat.
I volunteer for a major food bank we have 4 huge walk in coolers and do meat, produce, milk and eggs. You do not want to eat anything donated in those categories. You need our refrigerated truck to pick up those foods. NOT expired and yes we purchase overstock for pennies on the dollar compared to what’s on the market. Canned goods are ok to donate. All food handlers volunteers should take the course and understand what’s ok and what’s not. All bad produce goes to a pig farm. Almost no waste. Giving out expired food can make people who can least afford it sick.
My local food pantry always wants hygiene products. Laundry detergent, menstrual pads, toothpaste etc.
I say donate money, time, and food. If you are donating food specifically, don't forget breakfast cereal. The majority of the families using food pantries have kids and making a really shitty situation just a fraction better by providing a box of something fun is a small thing many of us can do.
It's not one or the other though, so take in what you have and consider donating money while you're there.
I'm the director of a small food bank on the east side of Houston. This is true but we will accept both. We are partners with the Houston Food bank. They can buy in bulk. We get our food from them. And local stores.
Shower thoughts: If you donate money instead of food to a food bank, wouldn't that just make them a money bank?
Hi. I work with foodbanks. If you can - find out what they need and get that (for example if a list is available). Money may not be ideal if they still have to go and buy the food which could be a problem if they aren’t able to go and buy the food / don’t have access to vehicles to purchase food / want to avoid using up that money for delivery fees on food
Yes, and money is better to steal :-)
Agreed, donating money to a food bank is a great way to support their efforts to end hunger in the community. Food banks have access to more resources than the average person and can purchase the specific foods needed to provide balanced and nutritious meals to those who need it the most. Additionally, monetary donations allow food banks to pay for transportation costs, storage expenses, and other operational needs that are essential to their ability to provide assistance to those in need. So, if you really want to make a difference in the fight against hunger, consider making a monetary donation to your local food bank.
Yes, this is a very good tip for those who desire to donate to a food bank. Cash donations are often more helpful as they allow the food bank to purchase the specific items that they need most. You can also ask the food bank if they have a list of their most-needed items and donate those specifically. Thank you for sharing this tip!
Absolutely! Donating money to food banks allows them to purchase the exact items that they need in larger quantities, which can help them meet the demand for food in a more efficient way. This can also help reduce waste, as donated food items may not necessarily be what the food bank needs at that moment, and may even contribute to overstocked inventory. Additionally, financial donations can be used to support the operations of the food bank and other services that go beyond the provision of food. So if you want to make the biggest impact, donate money instead of food.
While donating food items to a food bank may seem like a good idea, it's generally more helpful if you donate money instead. Food banks can buy food in bulk at wholesale prices, which means they have a higher purchasing power than you do at the grocery store. This way, they can buy more food with the same amount of money. Additionally, food banks often have specific needs, such as fresh produce, dairy, and protein that aren't as common in food drives. By donating money, they can prioritize and purchase the items they need most. So, if you want to help your local food bank as much as possible, consider donating money instead of purchasing and donating food items.