What Is Los Angeles Regional Food Bank?
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| Los Angeles Regional Food Bank is a private, nonprofit, charitable organization that obtains millions of pounds of surplus food that would otherwise go to waste and channels it to hundreds of thousands of hungry and needy people throughout Los Angeles County. Los Angeles Regional Food Bank is the second largest organization of its kind in the nation and is a member of the America’s Second Harvest national food bank network. It is the only America’s Second Harvest food bank in Los Angeles County. |
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Where And How Does The Food Bank Obtain Food?
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| The Food Bank actively solicits and receives donations of surplus product from all sectors of the food industry: growers, packers, processors, manufacturers, wholesalers, brokers and retailers. Food is donated for a variety of reasons: production errors, sluggish sales, mislabeling and cosmetic defects that do not affect edibility. Additionally, we receive food from organized food drives and individual donations. Through our Extra Helpings Program, we channel prepared food from restaurants, caterers and hotels directly to our affiliated agencies. |
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How Do Charitable Agencies Receive Food From the Food Bank?
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| Organizations throughout Los Angeles County, such as shelters, food pantries, soup kitchens, senior citizen and childcare centers apply to the Food Bank to become participating agencies. In order to utilize the services of the Food Bank, agencies must be nonprofit, tax exempt organizations and agree to give food received from the Food Bank to needy individuals. They must also agree to be monitored by the Food Bank annually. Once a member, the agencies order and pick up food from the Food Bank once a week. They may also come every afternoon for miscellaneous products if they wish. |
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Why Is Los Angeles Regional Food Bank Important?
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Forty-two percent of all households served by the Food Bank have one or more adults working, yet there are a significant number of families who are forced to choose between paying rent and buying groceries. Los Angeles Regional Food Bank offers a consistent way for charitable agencies to provide food to such households, as well as others who need this support.
Additionally, most charitable agencies do not have enough room to store large amounts of donated food. The Food Bank is able to receive, sort and house a great variety of food and other items allowing agencies the flexibility of selecting only what they need. |
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Where Does the Food Bank Receive Its Support?
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| Los Angeles Regional Food Bank is supported by individual and corporate contributions, private foundation grants, participating agencies shared maintenance fees and to a limited extent, government funding. |
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How Can I Help?
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You can do many things to support the Food Bank! We are always looking for volunteers and welcome all individuals and groups at our warehouse Monday through Saturday.
You can organize a food drive within your company or social group, or donate products individually. If a food drive is not convenient, try a fund drive instead.
Financial contributions are also welcome. You can even donate online! Every dollar donated provides $5 worth of food for the hungry in our community. That’s a much better deal than you could find at your local supermarket!
To learn more about getting involved, contact the Food Bank at (323) 234-3030. |
