Food Drive Planner

Why Hold a Food Drive?

Hunger in the lowcountry is a year-round crisis. By sponsoring a food drive, your business, school, church, or organization can help in the fight against hunger in coastal South Carolina. Food drives contribute much needed nonperishable food items that help stock the shelves of food pantries and other food assistance programs to create meals for your local community. A food drive is a great activity that is fun, easy, and rewarding. Everyone in your organization can get involved and make a difference.

1PLAN

2

PROMOTE

AND

ENGAGE

3

COLLECT

AND

GIVE

Establish a team to organize your food drive.

Together, set goals and choose start and end dates.

Many food drives also incorporate a theme.

Theme Ideas:

Meat the Need: canned meats, tuna, and beans

Back to School: granola bars, fruit cups, bite-size snacks, raisins, crackers

Supper Sides: boxed pastas, rice, soups,

macaroni and cheese

Five a Day: canned fruits and vegetables

Days of the Week: Macaroni Mondays, Tuna Tuesdays, Whole Wheat Wednesdays etc.

Wake Up Call: cereal, shelf stable milk, canned coffee, tea, oatmeal, grits, pancake mix

Event Theme: connect your food drive to an event such as a concert, sports game, pep rally, family reunion, marathon, store promotion, or holiday party.

In Honor Of: hold a food drive to celebrate a milestone such as a birthday or company anniversary.

Protein Power: We are always in need of proteins! Peanut butter, canned chicken, tuna, nuts, beans

You may also coordinate with the Food Bank to align your theme to one of our annual food drive initiatives.

Jan-Feb: Souper Bowl

Feb: Spread The Love Peanut Butter Drive

March: Super Food Drive Nutrition Themed Drive

May: Stamp Out Hunger Post Office Drive

September: Ton of Tuna Canned Tuna Drive

October: Student Food Drive

Promote your food drive through school or business newsletters, emails, posters, and your social media.

You may also incorporate or share information from our social media platforms to help spread the word and educate your audience about hunger.

lowcountryfoodbank.org

facebook.com/LowcountryFoodBank

twitter.com/LCFoodBank

instagram.com/lcfoodbank

Engagement Ideas:

Offer incentives: extra breaks, prizes, pizza party, dress-down day etc.

Send an empty bag home with a list of most needed items for people to fill with food.

Consider having a party or event and use canned food for admission.

Challenge another group to compete.

Have a donation box decoration competition.

Build a can structure.

Give awards for the most pounds collected.

Encourage your customers, neighbors, or vendors to participate.

Organize a group to tour the Lowcountry Food Bank and/or volunteer. See first hand where your food will go!

Let everyone know what food items are the most useful and needed.

Donate Foods You Would Eat!

Canned proteins such as tuna, chicken, salmon, beef stew, chili, soup, beans, and peanut butter

Canned fruits, vegetables, juices, spaghetti sauce, jelly, jam

Dry items such as baking mix, cereal, rice, pasta, beans, sugar, flour

Shelf stable milk, evaporated milk, powdered milk

Do Not Donate:

Foods without labels, to include homemade items.

Any open products. If the exterior box is open but the interior packaging is still sealed, that can be donated.

Avoid glass containers if possible.

Obtain sturdy collection boxes. Standard cardboard boxes work great. Large boxes may become heavy with canned foods, so smaller boxes often work best.

Determine the best locations to place your collection boxes. Choose high traffic/ high visibility areas.

If you are planning on a large food drive where boxes would be insufficient, please contact Mary Brook at mbrook@lcfbank.org to reserve barrels for your drive.

1 barrel is 3-ft high and can hold 250 to 350 pounds of food.

When Your Drive Ends:

Bring your food in! We have 3 locations where you can bring donations directly to us any week day between 8:30am-3pm.

Please provide your organizations contact info and specify that your donations are from a food drive. Our warehouse associates will weigh your donations and provide you with a receipt.

Lowcountry Food Bank Locations:

Charleston, Dorchester and Berkeley County:

2864 Azalea Drive

Charleston, SC 29405

843-747-8146

Beaufort, Jasper, Hampton, and Colleton County:

One Guess Road

Yemassee, SC 29945

843-589-4118

Georgetown, Williamsburg, and Horry County:

97 S. Broadway

Myrtle Beach, SC 29577

843-448-0341

If you have a large amount of food or are unable to bring your donations in, please give advance notice to Mary Brook to arrange pick up.

Thank you for helping feed the hungry

in our community!

[Did You Know?]

With $1, the Food Bank can purchase enough food to provide 6 meals to our community!

Please consider a fund drive in conjunction with your food drive.

Contact us for fund drive ideas and additional information on monetary donations.

Questions? Contact

Mary Brook

Food Resource Manager

mbrook@lcfbank.org

843-747-8146 ext. 161