The Alabama Food Bank Network

What does the Food Bank do?

The Food Bank Network is Alabama's primary provider of donated food for agencies that serve the needy. Since its inception, the Alabama Food Bank Network has distributed millions of pounds of food for needy citizens.

Where does the food come from?

The majority of the food that the food banks distribute is provided by the food

industry, which donates surplus products rather than wasting them. Local food companies donate to the food banks and more than 400 national companies support us via America's Second Harvest.

Donations include: surplus supermarket items, fresh produce, production overruns, unsold breads, mislabeled goods--all wholesome and nutritious, but for one reason or another, unmarketable. The Food Bank also benefits from local food drives and distributes food on behalf of various state and federal feeding programs.

Who can receive food bank food?

Churches and non-profit organizations that meet the Food Bank's basic criteria may join the Food Bank. Member agencies include:

  • Food Outreach Ministries
  • Soup Kitchens
  • Emergency Food Cupboards
  • Shelters
  • Services to the Homebound
  • Drug and Alcohol Rehabilitation Programs
  • Programs for the Disabled
  • Group Homes
  • Senior Centers
  • Day Care Programs
  • After School Programs
  • Job Training and Placement Programs

What are the membership criteria?

To become a Food Bank member agency, an organization must:

  • Feed needy people free of charge,
  • Maintain a regular feeding program, with verifiable schedule of service hours, and
  • Be an incorporated 501(c)(3) nonprofit or church.

How do the member agencies support the Food Bank?

A Food Bank is a membership organization whose mission is to be a central clearinghouse for the collection of donated food and its distribution to charitable organizations that feed the needy. In order to cover the costs of soliciting, collecting, repacking, and distributing millions of pounds of donated food each year, member agencies provide a shared maintenance fee. This shared maintenance fee is applied to the cost per pound based on usage of food bank services. The shared maintenance fee is not a payment for food, and no needy person pays for food.

At the Food Bank, a feeding agency can secure a quarter ton of nutritious food for just $60.