The San Francisco Food Bank (SFFB)is the critical link between food and people, providing food to over 220,000 people every year through 600+ community food programs. SFFB partners with 400+ nonprofit agencies to serve  people at risk of hunger in San Francisco and Marin. This year, the SFFB will distribute 41.5 million pounds of food to the community– enough for 88,000 meals every day.

We recently caught up with the SFFB’s  Events Manager, Jessica Brittsan who gave us the inside scoop behind the organization and their amazing philanthropic efforts here in the bay area.

What is unique about San Francisco Food Bank?

Our neighborhood food pantry network is unique in that over 200 sites receive weekly distributions of groceries that are set up farmers’ market style. People in need are able to choose the foods they like from an array of fruits, vegetables, grains, dairy, staples and protein. The pantries also offer nutrition education and “shoppers” learn how to cook with some of the foods with which they may be unfamiliar. In public school pantries where a majority of the children qualify for school meals, the SFFB has initiated a daily morning snack program that provides healthy snacks to tide the children (many who’ve not eaten breakfast at home) over until lunch. We also have special healthy senior pantries, and have recently initiated a home-delivered groceries program for seniors who are too frail to attend a pantry distribution. Our mission is to end hunger in our community. We are also working with government locally, regionally, statewide and nationally to advocate for policies and legislation that addresses the root causes of hunger.

How and when was the SF Food Bank inspired and created?

The SF Food Bank started out as an informal project of the San Francisco Council of Churches. It was incorporated in 1987 and saw its first big test in the aftermath of the 1989 earthquake. That year, the Food Bank distributed 2.3 million pounds of food into the community. Since then, the Food Bank has grown to serve over 200,000 people each year and distribute enough food for 91,500 meals every day.

What is the overall goal of the SF Food Bank?

Hunger is a serious problem in our community – with 1 in 5 children and 1 in 5 adults at risk of hunger in San Francisco and Marin. Every day, the Food Banks source, collect, sort, inspect and repackage thousands of pounds of food, then distributes it to soup kitchens, neighborhood grocery centers, school programs and seniors in need. The goal of the San Francisco Food Bank is to end hunger in the community.

The San Francisco Food Bank and the Marin Food Bank are working towards meeting this goal by serving over 200,000 people per year. This year, the Food Bank will distribute 43.5 million pounds of food to the community– enough for at least 88,000 meals every day.

Where and how do you collect food? Where do you donate the goods?

The San Francisco Food Bank collects millions of pounds of food from growers, packers, processors, manufacturers, the USDA and grocery stores. This can include test-marketed products, items close to code date, produce that is the wrong shape or size for conventional markets and excess. Community ood drives help to provide an important source of variety.

Volunteers sort, repack and shelve almost 400 tons of food at the San Francisco Food Bank warehouse every week, doing the work of what would be about 50 full-time employees. At any given time, there are around 2 million pounds of food in the warehouse.

The food is delivered to over 400+ local nonprofit organizations. This includes over 200 neighborhood pantries, soup kitchens, senior centers, homeless shelters and youth programs. Visitors to our neighborhood pantries select food at weekly farmers’ market-style distributions to cook at home.

How much of your work depends on volunteer contributions?

Volunteer provide essential support to the San Francisco Food Bank’s operations. Projects typically involve sorting community food donations, repackaging bulk items into more useful portions, gleaning and boxing fresh produce, and assembling grocery boxes. Last year, more than 22,000 volunteers provided 114,000 hours of service to the San Francisco Food Bank—the equivalent of 55 full time staff.

Volunteers are welcome to help out on a one-time or on-going basis, whichever works for them. These done-in-a-day projects can be scheduled through our online calendar via our website at www.sffoodbank.org/volunteer. At the end of the project, Food Bank staff gather the volunteers together for the results of the day’s work: how many pounds of food were sorted and boxed, and how many meals will be generated from that effort. Volunteers keep coming back because the program is well-organized, efficient, fun and supports a basic human need in their community.

What has been the Food Bank’s biggest accomplishment to date?

In 2005, the San Francisco Food Bank took the lead in establishing a statewide Farm to Family program. Through Farm to Family, food banks throughout the state receive fresh produce directly from growers and packers. The growth and development of that program has had a huge impact on the accessibility of fresh fruits and vegetables in low-income communities all over the state.

Do you have a volunteer fundraising organization? If so, what is their charter?

We have recently initiated a “Champions Circle” comprised of former board members, prospective board members and leadership donors with an interest in becoming more engaged in serving as ambassadors, advocates and askers. There is no charter, per se; there is a job description, a Chairperson and a designated liaison with the board of directors. The group meets biannually, and collaborates with staff to develop individual work plans and take on assignments. From this group, subcommittees will be recruited to plan and implement fundraising events.

Who are your partners or sponsors?

We have several corporate sponsors: Adobe, Bank of America, Deutsche Bank, JP Morgan, Visa, Bechtel, Channel 5, Del Monte, FedEx, Give Something Back Office Supplies, Keurig Coffee, Riverbed, Union Bank and Wells Fargo. As to volunteers, we have a very active volunteer program, with more than 22,000 people volunteering at our warehouse location throughout the year – the equivalent of 55 full time people. Finally, we are a part of Bay Area Food Banks which includes San Francisco Food Bank, Alameda Food Bank, Second Harvest Food Bank of San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties, Contra Costa/Solano County Food Bank, and Redwood Empire Food Bank.

What are the top ways that your organization raises funds?

Our funding comes from Foundations, businesses (through grants and matching gift programs), food and fund drive events, and individual donors. No gift is too small and makes a profound difference in fighting hunger in our community. For every $1 donated, the Food Bank can distribute $6 worth of food! 97% of all donations go directly toward getting food to hungry people.Almost 33% of all the funds raised come from individual donors

What is the most effective fundraiser that  the Food Bank has ever been a part of?

Our “Food from the Bar” campaign, run in partnership with the San Francisco Bar Association is our most effective fundraiser, year after year. Now about to begin our 20th annual effort, the “Food from the Bar” pits law firm against law firm (and legal departments) in a challenge to see which group can garner the most points, through a combination of dollars donated, food contributed, and hours volunteered.

How do you thank your donors?

Donors are the heart and soul of the Francisco Food Bank’s funding. Unrestricted gifts to the Food Bank enable us to direct funds to the areas of greatest need, and help us continue developing innovative programs to meet current challenges of fighting hunger. These programs would not be possible without the support of our community. We thank our donors in a myriad of ways: sending letters expressing our gratitude, listing donors’ names in our Annual Report, sending e-newsletters on a monthly basis, they might get thanked in one or many ways:

• Letter or email
• Phone call from a staff member, board member or the Executive Director
• In the annual report (Breadwinners, Meal-a-Month donors, Corps)
• On the donor wall in the Food Bank lobby
• Our corporate sponsors, who give at a certain level, get “thanked” on the Food Bank barrels that are located in businesses and organizations throughout San Francisco
• We thank sponsors of things in event programs and signage
• After an online campaign we generally send out a post campaign report back and additional thank-you blast
• We also thank our major donors ($1,000+) by inviting them to the Breadwinners reception

What external resources to you use in your fundraising and outreach efforts?

SFFB uses a variety of external resources, from the efforts of our active and engaged Board of Directors to our pro-bono advertising agency. We tap into the on-line volunteers at Sparked and regularly tweet, blog and post to Facebook.

Do you have any upcoming events?

June 9 is our annual One Big Table Dinner. It will be a very special night of showing support for the SF Food Bank hosted by Chef Annie Summerville and Greens Restaurant. It will be an intimate evening where we gather for a specially prepared meal. Tickets start at $250. Seating is limited. Visit www.sffoodbank.org for more details.

June 22 is CANstruction, an event that brings together builders of all kinds in a competition to make eye-popping structures entirely out of canned food.

How can we get involved/help?

1. Donate: Through out purchasing practices and by leveraging donations we are able to turn every dollar you donate into $6 worth of food. Our administrative costs are very low and 97 cents of every dollar donated goes directly into the community. We also have a four star rating on Charity Navigator.
2. Run a food/fund drive at your office: Hunger doesn’t take a summer vacation. Register your place of work, community group or congregation to do a food and fund drive.
3. Volunteer: Volunteers are welcome to help out on a one-time or on-going basis, whichever works for them. These done-in-a-day projects can be scheduled through our online calendar via our website at www.sffoodbank.org/volunteer.
4. Follow us on twitter @sffoodbank, Find us on facebook, and Check out our blog sffoodbank.wordpress.com