A food bank is an organization that collects donations of non-perishable food items and distributes them to organizations or people who need them. With over 925 million people worldwide lacking the right amount of food, food banks and donations are an important help in meeting this need. Each community has citizens in need of help in buying food for themselves and their families. You can contribute to the fight against world hunger by starting a food bank.
Steps
Step 1. Find a place to store food
The amount of donations can vary throughout the year, so find a place that is large enough to hold all the food you receive. If you create an independent business, you could start by storing food in your cellar or garage.
Step 2. Contact local organizations who can help you receive food donations and who can recommend people in need to deliver it to
Working with local churches, schools and government agencies is a great place to start.
Step 3. Make yourself known by reporting your business to other food banks in your area
Some of these may have extra food that you can buy. Some will ask you to pay to acquire the food, while others will not.
Step 4. Set up a schedule whereby you will provide food to people or agencies
Some food banks deliver donations every 2 weeks. You could work with them to provide your donations for the other 2 weeks to serve a larger slice of the community.
Step 5. Collect donations
You could do this by taking a car ride between schools and churches to collect food. Or organize an area outside the local supermarket or other shops, where anyone who wants can leave their donation. Make sure you have the shop owners' permission before doing anything. Grocery stores may also want to donate products that are close to expiration.
Step 6. Review the products as they arrive
Organize the shelves in your food bank according to the type of product (cans, boxes, breakfast items, main dishes). Double-check the expiration dates and throw away all expired and suspicious products.
Step 7. Prepare the boxes of food the day before distributing them
Try to fill the boxes with different foods. If you are packing food for single people, consider the number of people to whom the package will be destined and act accordingly.
Step 8. Keep a record of the people using your service, their food needs and the number of people in the family
This data can help you decide what to prepare for each.
Step 9. Search for other funds
Food donations may decrease at certain times of the year, especially around the holidays, when there is a greater need. By obtaining additional funds, you will be able to fight hunger constantly. Contact local community groups for financial funding or check government funding programs.
Advice
- You can get the boxes to pack food at the local supermarket. Talk to someone from the store and ask them to put some boxes away for you. It will also help you save.
- More specific foods (such as gluten-free or sugar-free) should be placed on separate shelves. When it happens that diabetics or people with special dietary needs come to the food bank, you will know how to direct them directly to those shelves and you can let them choose the foods they want.
- You may need to establish prerequisites for accessing your service. This will allow you to make sure that the people you supply really need donations.
