Do You Know What to Bring to a Food Drive?

Thanksgiving is unmistakably the busiest time of the year in food pantries. Food drives are frequently held in an effort to meet the ever-increasing need for assistance. The trick to these food drives is donating items that can be used. Do you know what to bring?

The biggest phrase you may hear around food drives is non perishables. Simply put, non perishables are food items that have a very long shelf life and won’t spoil immediately. Here are some good examples: ready to eat vegetables, bottled water, protein bars, cereals, pastas and noodles, crackers, rice, peanut butter and baby food in addition to various food spices and seasonings. Also remember that you can’t go wrong with canned, jarred and pickled foods like: canned veggies, soups and tuna fish.

Other items you might want to consider are a variety of hygiene products. These can include but are not limited to: toilet paper, razors and shaving cream, toothbrushes and toothpaste, soap, deodorant and nail clippers. While food this time of year is very important, these basic products can easily be forgotten.

As a rule of thumb you should check with a coordinator of a local food drive to see if there are any particular items of interest they are seeking. Are they looking for turkeys and actual groceries because they have refrigerated trucks or are they just collecting canned products? Bringing the wrong products can be a waste and can be avoided with a simple phone call.

As always you can contact our Valley agencies with food pantries for details.

Father McKenna St. Vincent de Paul Society - (203) 734-7577

Spooner House - www.act-spooner.org