Donate Food
Foodlink relies on people like you to help feed the approximately 94,000 women, children, seniors, working poor and people with disabilities who turn to our member programs each year. With your help, Foodlink warehouses and distributes food to 500 food pantries, soup kitchens and other food assistance programs throughout a 10-county area.
Every donation helps fight hunger in our community. Foodlink offers a variety of ways to make large and small donations as an individual, corporation, or food company.
Individuals
Single Donations
Moving? Cleaning? Extra food in your pantry?
Foodlink and our network of 500 food assistance programs always appreciate the generosity of individuals who want to make a difference. Whether it is a few cans from your pantry or a few boxes of household supplies, Foodlink will gladly accept your donation and distribute it to where it is most needed. Foodlink will also accept non-food donations in good condition.
All food items to be donated must be:
In their original, unopened packages
Within the expiration date on the package
In plastic jars or containers, not glass
No homemade food items can be accepted
Non-food items that are new or in gently used condition only
How to Make a Single Donation:
Contact Foodlink to schedule a time to drop off or a pick up your donation. Pick ups can be arranged for donations of 7 boxes or more or large non-food item donations. Please contact us for more information at warehouse@foodlinkny.org or call (585) 328-3380.
Food Drives
Holding a food drive is a fun and easy group activity and helps give people a sense of social responsibility. Food drives also provide critically needed nonperishable food for community programs throughout our area.
For more information on how to organize your own food drive, and most needed foods, contact fooddrives@foodlinkny.org or call (585) 328-3380.
We will be happy to work with your organization to provide food drive barrels, materials and a Foodlink representative to come out to speak to your organization about the difference your efforts can make for our neighbors in need. Please see the Food Drive Resources section for more helpful tips to make your food drive a success.
The following files are in PDF and require Acrobat Reader.
Food Drive Resources
Food Drive Flyer 
This informational flyer lists the types of foods we are looking for and can be used to promote your food drive.
The Food Drive Suggestions
This sheet contains information on how to run a successful food drive and gives you a little bit of information about why we are looking for the foods we list on the food drive flyer.
The Special Food Drives Ideas
Themed food drives are a great way to connect the food you are collecting to the ways in which the food will be used. Themes can also make shopping for food easier by narrowing the items requested.
Regardless of how you set up your food drive, have fun with it and let people you are working with know how valuable their contribution is to the people we serve.
Together we can help end hunger at home.
Virtual Food Drives
Invite friends and family to help fight hunger!
Many of our donors go that extra mile — by using Foodlink’s Virtual Food Drive tool to spread awareness and raise funds through events of their own creation. Foodlink will help you create a personalized web page. From there, you can invite friends and family to sponsor your participation in events such as marathons or to honor your big day, such as your wedding or bar or bat mitzvah — by making a donation to Foodlink. Start your own page today!
Your dollar will go farther with a Virtual Food Drive! Learn about its benefits:
LOWER COSTS: The Virtual Food Drive tool eliminates the operational costs of transportation and staff hours involved in a traditional food drive.
STRETCHES DOLLARS: Your dollars go further as the food bank saves costs by using funds for bulk buying and special partnerships with large food donors.
SUPPLIES MUCH-NEEDED ITEMS: Donations go toward purchasing much-needed supplemental food and grocery products that traditional food drives do not bring in.
EASY AND FUN TO USE: As a donor, you'll get a real sense of the impact your donation has on feeding the hungry. With the click of a button you can give much-needed food and know how many meals your donation has helped provide. Every $5 helps to provide 25 meals for people in need!
Learn more about Virtual Food Drives
Corporations
Your company can help end hunger at home by hosting a Virtual Food Drive, running a food drive, volunteering as a group at the food bank, and by supporting our annual events. (links to topics below)
Food Drives
Holding a food drive is a fun team-building activity and helps give people a sense of social responsibility. Food drives also provide critically needed nonperishable food for our network of food pantries. Learn how to hold a successful food drive and view our list of most-needed foods.
To hold a corporate food drive, contact our Food Drive and Volunteer Coordinator at (585) 328-3380 x149 or email fooddrives@foodlinkny.org.
Virtual Food Drives
Using our interactive Virtual Food Drive tool, Foodlink can customize a fundraising web page for your company and philanthropic interests. Virtual Food Drives enable Foodlink to provide more people with more food more efficiently than through a traditional food drive. Every $50 donated helps feed an elderly couple for six weeks; $100 helps provide a food pantry with enough food for 500 home-cooked meals.
Why run a Virtual Food Drive?
EASY TO USE: There is no need for employees to remember to bring in bulky food, and your company is not encumbered with logistics associated with traditional food drives.
SIMPLE TO ORGANIZE: A tailored Virtual Food Drive can be easily organized by email around your company, or placed on your company's Intranet with the investment of minimum resources.
TAILORED FOR YOUR COMPANY: Foodlink can work with your company to customize a Virtual Food Drive to include your company's logo and messages.
TEAM BUILDING: Corporations are given full access to track the success of the campaign for internal morale-building purposes.
MAXIMUM EFFICIENCY: Every dollar donated allows Foodlink to procure six pounds of food — there is no more efficient way to help!
To find out more about holding a Virtual Food Drive, contact our Food Drive and Volunteer Coordinator at (585) 328-3380 x149 fooddrives@foodlinkny.org
Annual Events & Campaigns
Foodlink holds a variety of annual events and campaigns that help us to raise food for our community’s poor and hungry. Your organization can participate in and support these efforts in different capacities from purchasing tickets to events, becoming an event sponsor, and checking out hunger at your local store.
If you are interested in participating in events and campaigns, please contact our Development Department at (585) 328-3380 or info@foodlinkny.org
Volunteering
Foodlink relies not only food donations, but also on the generous donation of time to help sort and package food in our warehouse. We are able to arrange volunteer projects for 1 person to 100. Volunteering is a great team building exercise for your staff and a great way to give back to the community.
Learn about our many volunteer opportunities by visiting the Volunteer section of this website, or by calling our Food Drive and Volunteer Coordinator at (585) 328-3380 or email volunteer@foodlinkny.org.
Food Company Donations
Foodlink serves as a solution provider for your company by accepting food donations that can lead to cost savings, tax benefits and media exposure, while protecting your company from liability. Foodlink also accepts nonfood donations, such as office equipment, to help our member programs and the clients they serve.
We urge you to join your peers in donating food and nonfood products to Foodlink. To make a food donation or take a tour of our warehouse, please contact info@foodlinkny.org.
Why Donate Food
Donating food makes good business sense. Here are just a few reasons why:
TAX DEDUCTION: The 1976 Federal Tax Law (H.R. 10612) permits you to deduct all of the costs of producing, packaging and delivering your products — plus up to 50 percent of the difference between the cost and the fair market value.
COST SAVINGS: In salvaging food and other products, your company eliminates dumping costs.
INVENTORY CONTROL: A food donation can help reduce your surplus of hard-to-move inventory, and inventory that can be eaten but not sold.
COMPANY PROMOTION: Foodlink promotes our food donors through a variety of communications and marketing materials, from our newsletters and website to event signage and press outreach.
COMMUNITY GOODWILL: Your support and goodwill will win you the respect of the community.
PROUD STAFF: Employees feel good about their company's role in making a difference in their community.
How to Donate Food
Making a food donation to Foodlink is time and cost efficient:
EASY CONTACT: Contact our Warehouse Manager, at (585) 328-3380 or email warehouse@foodlinkny.org
IMMEDIATE FOOD PICKUP: Foodlink’s fleet of trucks is on hand to pick up your donation anywhere in our 10-county service area.
STREAMLINED WAREHOUSE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM: Your food donation will be stored in our 100,000-square-foot warehouse, 40,000 square foot cooler or 30,000 square foot freezer. Each donation will be assigned a unique food bank item code for easy tracking and distribution.
EFFICIENT DISTRIBUTION: Your donation will be quickly distributed to needy people through our member programs, which are monitored and trained to ensure that donated product does not reenter the marketplace.
INSTANT FEEDBACK: Your donation will be tracked, documented and receipted.
LEGAL PROTECTION: Your company is protected from liability by the Good Samaritan Act.
What to Donate
Foodlink Food Bank accepts anything from cases to truckloads of dry-stored, nonperishable, cooler, or frozen food and nonfood items. Call Foodlink if your products are:
Surplus
Cosmetically damaged
Mislabeled or unlabeled
Code-dated
Discontinued, test-market and private-label brands
Under- or overweight items
Seasonally packaged
Bulk packed
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