FAQ Category: What We Do

40 percent of the food Feeding America West Michigan distributes is fresh, frozen or shelf-stable fruits and vegetables. The rest is comprised of meat, dairy and other foods such as baked goods and various non-perishable items. We source nutritious food … Continue reading →

Our Mobile Food Pantry program brings fresh groceries directly into communities with a high need for food support. A Mobile Food Pantry is essentially a farmers market on wheels, so it’s an effective avenue for distributing fresh, perishable food to … Continue reading →

We have the ability to handle large quantities of food that our agency partners — including food pantries, food clubs (co-ops), shelters and more — are unable to handle because they lack sufficient space, equipment or staff. Therefore, we are … Continue reading →

Upon arrival at the food bank, food is inspected and if necessary, sorted, repackaged and labeled by staff and volunteers. Volunteers are the food bank’s lifeblood. Each year, hundreds of volunteers serve thousands of hours in our warehouse, doing tasks … Continue reading →

We believe nutritious food is an essential piece of a healthy life. With this belief in mind, we purchase food at low costs to fill any nutritional gaps left by donations and USDA foods. For example, we compensate farmers to … Continue reading →

The food bank, its branches and distribution organizations receive donated food from various sources including farmers, manufacturers, distributors, retailers, the USDA and food drives. Food waste occurs at every stage of the food system — from the farm to the … Continue reading →