The Foodbank Donation Thread

machasraven

morrisons have bags at the front of store on a cage for different items the local food banks need. 

Flugelhorn

machasraven said:

morrisons have bags at the front of store on a cage for different items the local food banks need. 

Indeed our local Morrisons does this, the bags contain items that the Food Bank needs and are varying prices depending on what you want to spend. Take it through the till with your own shopping then it is put in the food bank trolley

Brie

MSE_Laura_F said:

Hello lovely folk. I know that some supermarkets put up a list of items the local food bank is short on. Have any of you spotted such a list in your supermarket? A photo, if possible, would be particularly appreciated!

I'm trying to gather some general tips about how to find out what items are needed.

Thank you. 🙏

@MSE_Laura_F

No one at our local is updating any of the apps at this point so anything on there is out of date.  And unfortunately their website directs you to the app which is months out of date.  I don't know if that's true of all FBs or not but we're still onboarding a new admin person so maybe they will be able to update things.  I've mentioned this to the top guy in the organisation as well as the local manager so hopefully we'll sort it soon.  

I also saw that the local FB has those phone barcode thingmes (QRs?) that can be left on shop counters or put up at the supermarkets but I think that is to help with cash donations instead of doing a "please buy" list.  I'm not good with those codes so haven't tried it out myself yet but will do so in the next week, given a chance.  

The most practical thing I've seen at a nearby Tesco, likely from the local to them Trussell Trust FB, is paper shopping bags with a list of things to buy listed on them.  So it will say "£5 bag, please add 3 tins beans, 2 stock cubes, 4 ketchup" or similar.  So you know exactly what they currently need as these are hand written.  And there's various bags with different ££ totals so you can choose what you can afford.  You go about doing your shop, and pick up the things listed on the bag and take that to the till.  Pay for it all with your own groceries but then put the FB items in the paper bag to drop into their collection spot by the exit.  A very simple idea that I'm going to watch over the coming weeks.  

Brie

And for everyone else - don't forget we're about half way through the summer school break and there's a constant stream of people going to the FBs to get stuff to help feed the kids who normally get school lunches. 

The local FB network is getting "holiday hunger" vouchers that are issued by the schools to families who might not normally need to use this service.  Emphasis is on kid friendly lunches but also holiday things - sun screen (not that it's much been needed of late....), colouring books, crayons, footballs - anything to keep the kids entertained.  

And fyi - FBs normally keep a record (securely, data protection and all that) of who comes in regularly (or not) and where they get vouchers from.  This helps them build a picture of the food wealth in a community that is useful when entering into discussions with ill informed political types spouting things about feeding a family on 30p a day.  It also helps when applying for charity grants or campaigning to local corporations for funding or other support.  Within a FB there are often other resources beyond food so knowing that a certain family is very regularly attending helps signpost them to other services such as budget or debt advice, homelessness prevention services etc.  

MSE_Laura_F

Hugely useful, thanks a mill @Brie. The paper shopping bag with lists on them is a lovely idea.

beanielou

Our local foodbank has a mini blackboard on the side of the collection box which is updated as needed.

Cherryfudge

The paper bag idea is great.

Here's the list of deficits from our local foodbank's website.

Tinned Pies

Creamed Rice
Hot Dogs
Jars of Jam
Small Sugar
Tinned Fruit
Toothpaste
Deodorant
Shampoo
UHT Milk
Coffee

Tinned Potato
Toilet Roll
Washing Powder

Instant Mash 

Sponge Puddings 

Squash
Individual cereal packs

Custard

Tooth Brushes

Instant Noodles

Brie

Oh, just remembered.....depending on where you live in the country there may be an influx of rough sleepers in the summer time.  I'm on the south coast so there's a whole colony that sets up here until the autumn.  Other resort cities are likely the same as not only may it be warmer but the tourists may be seen as easy picking grounds for certain individuals.  (not having a dig at anyone, just stating the logic of why some might move there temporarily)

Anyways - my point is that some who is sleeping rough may have limited or no cooking facilities and certainly no way to keep things chilled.  So very popular are tins with ring pulls and stuff in jars.  So if there is a tin of beans and sausages with a ring pull top that would be ideal.  Hot dogs in jars are good too as well as any easy to transport things like jars of jam or peanut butter.  Single serving tuna is great as well as anything in a foil or plastic packet that is fully cooked and normally microwaved but can be eaten cold like couscous or prepped rice. Single serving fruit in juice is great as well.  

Some foodbanks are also happy to fill someone's thermos flask with hot water so they can have a cuppa soup later or even a wash!

MSE_Laura_F

I've had a stab at turning the tips in this thread into a blog. The aim is to help people to donate more effectively and in a more MoneySaving way.
https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/team-blog/2023/08/food-bank-donation-tips/

I'd be very grateful for any feedback, particularly anything you feel I've got wrong or missed out. 

Massive thanks for all your pointers.

Brie

MSE_Laura_F said:

I've had a stab at turning the tips in this thread into a blog. The aim is to help people to donate more effectively and in a more MoneySaving way.
https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/team-blog/2023/08/food-bank-donation-tips/

I'd be very grateful for any feedback, particularly anything you feel I've got wrong or missed out. 

Massive thanks for all your pointers.

Nice one.  It'd be nice if there was a website that listed all food banks and similar places but I've yet to find one.  

And just as an aside - and after waffling about single portion tins with ring pulls..... I was in Lidl today and saw they have 3 packs of single portion tins of tuna, each with a pull tab so not tin opener required.  A 3 pack was £1.29 but the Lidl app allowed you to buy 30 packs which should be £38.70 for just £19.99.  So that's 90 portions for 22p each.  What a bargoon!!!