News from BFB lately is mostly good, but some feels a bit alarming. 

First, the good: we’re operating in ways that we’re very proud of. Since reopening for shopping, it’s been wonderful to watch folks select the items they want to take home and to hear their feedback about how nice it is to be able to shop again. People continue to return who we haven’t seen since early 2020 or before due to the option to select the groceries they want. Our distribution floor is full of great food because we are buying most of it from wholesalers who can get us lots of quantity via delivery or local pick up. We continue to stock beautiful vegetables and fruit, a mix of dairy items, eggs, milk and nondairy substitutes, and frozen proteins. And we have all the non-perishable food items you would expect, plus diapers, toilet tissue and menstrual support products. We have also been buying new items that represent a wider variety of food cultures so that more of our community members will find familiar food at our food bank. We’ve kept our extended hours and unlimited weekly visits, all in an effort to give people increased access to the food and essentials they need while supporting BIPOC growers and vendors and our local economy.

What is unnerving is that we are busier than ever. We’re observing that providing better access to good food at our food bank combining with the end of some pandemic benefit programs and growing inflation is pushing more people to rely on visits here. In terms of numbers, in February 2020 we experienced 17,000 client visits. In March 2022, we counted nearly 34,000 client visits.  In order to make sure we have the right food and enough of it, we will likely spend $3,000,000 on food this year. This will be the most we’ve spent on food at our food bank, but we can only do that with the support of our generous and valued donors. Without local supporters, our food bank would be a very different place. We wouldn’t have anywhere near the quality or quantity of food that makes our services stand out, and the folks we seek to support would have a harder time than they already are. If you’ve given in years or months past, please consider your ability to help us again by donating this year. We thank you for staying invested in bettering our community, and for all you have done to keep us energized and inspired.

-Mike Cohen,

Executive Director

GLEANING RETURNS!

The Small Potatoes Gleaning Project leadership this year will be in the capable hands of Emily Pittis who joined the BFB staff in mid-April. Emily has deep roots in Whatcom County and comes to the position most recently from farming in Montana. She is getting the lay of the land, poring over seed catalogs for planting this year at Boxx Berry Farm, and excited to meet gleaners in the field! She's also excited to work with BFB farm partners and any homeowners with tree fruit to donate.

Please be on the lookout for glean/work party announcements in the coming weeks, and if you want to drop Emily a line, she can be reached at [email protected] and the gleaning phone: (360) 303-0912.

Pictured: 2021 gleaners holding produce

VICTORY GARDENS

Generous home gardeners may share their bounty with our food bank! Here are some tips to keep in mind before donating your homegrown produce:

1. Donate to our warehouse receiving door Monday-Wednesday, 10 AM - 4 PM (and grab a free victory garden sign while you're here!)
2. Please place small loose items in 1-2 pound bags or clamshell containers.
3. Donate clean produce of quality that you would be happy to eat yourself. Please no groundfall fruit nor bolted greens!
4. Individual summer squash should weigh 1 pound or less.

Thanks to all who keep growing with us!

Pictured: Tending a home garden

CUSTOMER CHOICE EXPANSION

SHOP

The return of in person shopping at our Ellis Street location included an increase in floor space. More space means more room to offer a broader diversity of products.

Americorps Member staff Eve Rivera is hosting monthly feedback tables to gather customer input about menu additions and more. The last few months have seen the addition of cactus leaves, daikon radish, garlic, Field Roast meat alternative, cottage cheese, all purpose flour and much more! We look forward to even more culturally relevant foods being available for shoppers.

Pictured: Eve Rivera during April feedback table

PICK UP

In March, the prepacked boxes offered at Christ the King Church parking lot went from one type to four! We now offer the following box type options for pick up every Tuesday 3-6 PM:

• BASIC usually contains: lots of vegetables, some fruit, dry goods, miscellaneous dairy, eggs, milk and meat.

• LATIN AMERICAN FOOD usually contains: lots of vegetables (including jalapeños, tomatillos and cactus when available), some fruit, masa, dry beans/lentils, other dry goods, miscellaneous dairy, eggs, milk and meat. 

• VEGAN usually contains: lots of vegetables, some fruit, vegan dry goods, no animal products, plant milk and plant protein.

• GLUTEN FREE usually contains: lots of vegetables, some fruit, gluten free dry goods, miscellaneous dairy, eggs, milk and meat.

HOME DELIVERY

After a successful pilot of different box types at our Pick Up program, we are launching Home Delivery box choice on May 6! The same four box types are being offered to the over 400 households in the program with the hope to eventually expand to custom orders.

Learn more about the Home Delivery program here.

Pictured: Box types displayed at Pick Up at Christ the King Church Parking Lot

PARTNER GROWTH

Bellingham Technical College's food pantry is getting an enhancement!

Bellingham Food Bank is now ordering a variety of hearty produce, fresh eggs and dairy, frozen protein and shelf stable staples for BTC distribution each week.

BFB has hoped to support campus food security more directly, and BTC is a wonderful start to that goal!

Pictured: ASBTC Food Pantry

COMMUNITY SUPPORTERS

Recent and upcoming community based events and opportunities for support:

• Ridwell collected over 3,500 lbs in donations via their membership in April!
• DART is collecting food donations at Fred Meyer Lakeway through June 16 in preparation for their airlift drill.
• Stamp Out Hunger is back Saturday, May 14! Look for the donation envelope in your mailbox to participate or donate online here.

Pictured: Ridwell donations

• Keller Williams is raising funds for their Red Day promotion on May 14.
• BFB volunteer and amateur athlete Ethan Hunger will burn another 10,000 calories in a day on July 16 this year and his goal is to raise $50,000! See his page here and stay tuned for updates.

Pictured: Ethan Hunger's Hunger vs Hunger campaign

SHOP

1824 Ellis St

MONDAY 10am-6pm

WEDNESDAY 10am-6pm

FRIDAY 10am-6pm

PICK UP

Christ the King Church

4173 Meridian St 

TUESDAY 3-6pm

HOME DELIVERY

FRIDAYS 9am-3pm

bellinghamfoodbank.org/home-delivery