Traditional food drives help us provide a variety of nutritious food and miscellaneous items to our Partner Agencies helping seniors, children and low-income families who face hunger. Collect non-perishable food, hygiene items and baby products from our Shopping List and donate them the Foodbank for us to distribute. Multiply your impact by hosting a fund drive alongside your traditional food drive.
Tips for a Successful Food Drive
- Designate a Food Drive Coordinator. This person should be responsible for all communication with the Foodbank of Southeastern Virginia and the Eastern Shore.
- Register your food drive . Our handy Food Drive Toolkit, full of tips and resources, will help make your drive a big success.
- Set goals. No donation is too small or too big! 1.2 pounds of food is equivalent to one meal.
- Brainstorm and plan. Single-day food drives can be very successful because the focus is on one particular day. Most food drives last about two weeks, leaving enough time for donors to remember their donations. If food drives run too long, they can lose impact and people may lose interest.
- Create a collection system. Often, the best way to collect donations is to use small to medium-sized boxes that are easy to lift. Consider using boxes that you have available at your house or office. We recommend placing collection bins in high traffic areas where they are visible.
- Use our Shopping List. We are committed to providing nutritious meals that are low in fat, sodium and sugar.
- Promote your food drive. Spread the word and be creative!
- Send a progress report. Let participants know how close you are to the goal. Frequent updates can serve as a motivator and reminder.
- Turn in collected items to the Foodbank. Donations can be dropped off at our warehouses at 800 Tidewater Drive, Norfolk, VA 23504 or 24530 Coastal Boulevard, Tasley, VA 23441 between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. from Monday through Friday.
- Thank the donors. Be sure to give contributors updates on the results of your food drive.
Let’s Get Started
Our Food Drive Toolkit provides all the resources needed for conducting a successful food drive. Click here to download the Food Drive Toolkit.
Click here to register your food drive.
Download the Shopping List of items that are most needed here at the Foodbank. Share this however you can!
Promote your event with our posters, through social media and of course word of mouth!
If you will have volunteers at the food drive who would like to track their hours, download our Volunteer Community Service Hours form.
Consider donating to large scheduled food drives like the FM99 and 106.9 The Fox Mayflower Marathon and the Letter Carriers’ Stamp Out Hunger® Food Drive. Donating to these large drives is a more efficient way to help the Foodbank and out Partner Agencies during tremendous times of need.
Every donation makes a difference. Thank you for your commitment to our mission – leading the effort to eliminate hunger in our community. We’re all in this together, and together, we will continue to solve hunger.
Questions? Contact Priscilla Weddle, MPA, Community Engagement Coordinator at pweddle@foodbankonline.org or 757-644-4432.
