What are at least 5 foods needed by food banks?

By Hajira Hussain in Donation on November 17, 2021

Monetary donations allow us to purchase food and resources that are needed the most.  This includes fresh food like fruits, vegetables, protein-rich foods, and dairy products.  For every $1 donated, we can give out about $6 worth of food (based on 2021 data).  Donations of $20 or more are eligible for a tax receipt.

How To Donate

You can donate online securely through our Canada Helps page, over the phone (604-271-5609) with a Visa or Mastercard credit card, by mail with a cheque payable to the Richmond Food Bank Society, by e-Transfer to , or in person by cheque or cash at our main office (100-5800 Cedarbridge Way, Richmond BC, V6X 2A7).

In a typical week, your donations help us serve more than 1700 people through our grocery distributions and an additional 800 people through our school meals and community partners programs.

Here are some of our most needed items: (Click here to download our Most Needed Items Poster)

Our Top 5 Items, other than monetary donations:

• Canned protein – like chicken, turkey, meat, fish (ex: sardines, mackerel, salmon, tuna), and vegetarian protein (ex: beans, peas, lentils)
• Peanut Butter (especially with little or no added sugar or salt)
• Canned tomatoes, vegetables, and fruits (especially with little or no added sugar or salt)
• Rice, pasta (including whole grain pasta), whole grains (ex: basmati rice, barley) and lentils
• Soup and healthy tinned meals (ex: chunky soup/stew, chili, cream of mushroom soup, tomato soup, etc.)

We also accept:

(Oftentimes we also need the following items):

• Baby food, formula (non-expired)
• Baby wipes
• Unopened toiletries and personal hygiene items – toilet tissue, shampoo, soap, toothbrushes, toothpaste, feminine hygiene products (especially pads), adult incontinence products (especially briefs)
• Canned Milk (especially unsweetened)
• Gift Cards (ex: for prepared foods / hot beverages, in increments of around $10 or $15. These gift cards are useful for those of our clients who do not have access to kitchen facilities.)

We cannot accept:

To ensure health and safety, we are unable to accept the following items:

• Energy Drinks and Soda (Pop)
• Pharmaceuticals (prescription or over-the-counter drugs, pain-killers, vitamins, health supplements, laxatives, weight-loss products, antacids, decongestants, antihistamines etc.)
• Homemade items (foods cooked/prepared at home or anywhere other than a licensed commercial kitchen)
• Expired baby food or formula
• Products containing any amount of alcohol (including de-alcoholized beer and beverages)
• Cigarettes or smoking/vaping products
• Bulging (puffy), severely dented, or corroded/discoloured canned foods
• Open/used packages of food (where the food product has been exposed to the air)
• Recalled food items (please refer to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency’s website for updates on food recalls)

We do not distribute foods that are more than six months past the best before date. When donating items (even if they are shelf-stable), please try to donate only good-quality, healthy items that are not more than six months past the best before date. We recycle/compost or otherwise discard donated items that we cannot distribute. Please help us keep our unnecessary waste disposal to a minimum.

You can visit this page for more information on donating food.

• In the United States, food insecurity — or the lack of consistent access to enough food for an active, healthy life — is an important and often hidden problem. In 2015, 15.8 million US households (12.7 percent of the U.S. population) were food insecure at some time during the year.

• Food insecurity and poor access to healthy foods limit people’s ability to have a balanced diet and places children and adults at higher risk of obesity, diabetes and other diet-related health conditions, anxiety and depression, and reduced academic achievement.

• Food banks play a central role in the network of national, regional, and local organizations working together to address the needs of food insecure communities across the nation.

• Because food insecurity and health are interrelated, health care providers have begun to screen patients for food insecurity and connect food insecure individuals to food resources, including food pantries.

• Hospitals can support food banks and pantries in their efforts to provide fresh, healthy food for their clients

  • Health care facilities can help establish nutrition standards, which is an effective strategy to improve the nutritional quality of the food distributed.

  • Community benefit grants for refrigerators can help food pantries store and distribute fresh food.

  • Hospitals can support programs in which healthy food is sourced from farm gleaning, farmers market gleaning, plant-a-row programs in the local community, as well as from retail sources.

  • Hospitals can also help food banks partner with local farmers to increase the supply of fresh, healthy, local food for families in need and also support local farmers.

• From hosting food pantries onsite to offering diet and nutrition education to investing in mobile pantries there are myriads of ways to leverage the unique and critical partnership between food banks and hospitals.

This brief details opportunities to provide hospital community benefit support to food banks and pantries in order to improve community members’ access to healthy food.

Food banks can partner with local farmers to increase the supply of fresh, healthy, local food for families in need and also support local farmers.

• Increases the quantity and variety of fresh produce offerings for families seeking support from their local food pantry

• Helps farmers recover losses. Food banks pay below-market prices for produce that would otherwise not be sold due to cosmetic imperfections or overproduction

• Reduces food waste that could be better utilized to feed the 41 million Americans that experience hunger daily. Additionally, food waste often ends up in landfills and contributes to greenhouse gas emissions.

The Ohio Association of Food Banks and Kentucky Association of Food Banks (KAFB) are two of the many state food bank associations that have established or are developing farm-to-food bank programs:

Farm-to-food banks programs offer community benefit departments a great opportunity to increase healthy food access and support food producers in their own communities.

There are a lot of food drives during the holidays. What food banks need most is cash, but when the Scouts come knocking at your door collecting food or you're asked to bring a non-perishable item as entrance to the school’s holiday concert, food is in order.

NPR did a piece on the types of pantry staples that can help those who rely on food banks to build healthy meals. Food banks say the focus should be on “on whole, unprocessed or minimally processed foods” to help people create healthy meals. Instead of donating foods that are high in salt, sugar and highly processed grains, bring foods that are high in protein, healthy fats and whole grains instead.

1. canned beans
2. dry beans
3. peanut butter, or other nut butters
4. rolled oats
5. canned fruit in juice, not in light or heavy syrup
6. canned vegetables, with no or low-sodium
7. low-sodium soups
8. canned tuna in water
9. canned chicken
10. brown rice
11. quinoa
12. nuts, unsalted
13. seeds, unsalted
14. shelf stable milk and milk substitutes
15. whole grain pasta
16. low-sodium pasta sauce
17. popcorn kernels (not microwave popcorn)
18. canned stews
19. unsweetened apple sauce
20. whole grain, low-sugar cold cereals
21. olive or canola oil
22. canned tomatoes
23. dried fruits, no sugar added
24. honey
25. chicken, beef and vegetable broths and stock.

Armed with many of these foods, and perhaps a cookbook like "Good and Cheap: Eating Healthy on $4 a Day," which was developed to show SNAP recipients how to cook with inexpensive staples, those who rely on food banks can create healthy, filling meals.

Additional tips:

• Canned goods with pop-top lids are better than canned goods that require a can opener
• Avoid foods packaged in glass.
• Do not donate foods that are past the expiration date.