Alameda County Community Food Bank

Each week -- through 275 agency partners – the Food Bank provides food for 49,000 children, adults and seniors. We also advocate for change to address the root causes of hunger.

How do you help people in my community?

From a pantry run solely by volunteers at a church in Berkeley, to a Tri-Valley senior center serving hot meals, the Food Bank doesn’t stop at just providing food to clients at our 275 partner agencies. We approach the problem of hunger from short- and long-term perspectives.

Nutrition education. Our staff works with these agencies and their clients to demonstrate culturally appropriate, healthy recipes made with tight budgets in mind.

Emergency Food Helpline. Our emergency Food Helpline takes 3,000 calls monthly from people who are seeking help with their next meal – in English, Spanish, Cantonese, Mandarin and Vietnamese. By centralizing this operation, we help reduce the workload of small staffs and volunteers who distribute food in neighborhoods throughout the county.

Food stamp outreach. For many, even a full-time job may not be enough to cover rent, transportation and utilities – the food budget is the first thing to be cut. The Food Bank helps people who are qualified get nutrition assistance that will help them keep their families healthy. The Food Bank and the Alameda County Social Services Agency also offer training programs for local agency representatives to help them identify eligible recipients and put them on the road to self-sufficiency.

Increasing capacity. We have helped agencies buy critical capacity building appliances like chest freezers, refrigerators and computers to help them meet the needs they see every day. We also offer training on safe food preparation, technology and the ways to best make use of our food resources.

Long-Term Solutions. The Food Bank also works on long-term solutions to hunger with an eye toward putting ourselves out of business. Working with community members, the Food Bank Advocacy Team represents hundreds of thousands of people who are struggling with the burden of hunger. Together, we are making our voices heard in City Halls, Sacramento and Washington, D.C.

Your contribution through your payroll deduction makes all of this work possible.

Why do you need my support?

Every gift matters. 60% of our support comes from individual donors like you. Because of the commitment of our individual donors, the Food Bank is not subject to changes in government priorities or dependent on private and corporate foundations – who may be severely affected by the recession – for most of our funding.

While food drives and industry donations are important sources of food, it’s not enough to meet soaring demand in this economy. We purchase 60% of the food we distribute – nearly half of which is the fresh produce that’s most needed in the communities we serve.

Your support is critical to keeping food on the table for the 49,000 people who need our help every week.

How can I be sure that you will use my money wisely and won't waste it?

Charity Navigator has awarded us a perfect Four Star rating four years running – a record matched by only 9% of charities nationwide. 96 cents of every dollar goes directly toward providing food to children and adults struggling with the burden of hunger in our county.

For each $1 you donate, we will distribute $5 worth of food.

Can I Volunteer? How?

Our volunteers dedicate more than 44,000 hours per year – the equivalent of 20 full-time employees. There are many ways to help the Food Bank with your time – from the lasting commitments of our community advocates campaigning to pass a bill to the corporate teams who spend a few hours in our warehouse.

1. Organize a food drive or virtual food drive, both with quick online signup at www.accfb.org

2. Staff our emergency Food Helpline

3. Help by sorting food in our warehouse or assisting with administrative tasks

4. Join our advocacy team