Become a Community Partner

Receive free, fresh food to share with your visitors, residents, and clients.

Let Us Support Your Work

If your organization serves people experiencing food insecurity in the DC metro area, then you qualify to become a Community Partner.

It’s that simple.

We partner with shelters, food pantries, drop-in centers, rehabilitation facilities, community kitchens, after-school programs, affordable housing communities, mutual aids, faith-based programs, and countless others to redistribute food to the people who need it most.

FAQs

Yes! Community Partners can do their own food rescues.

It is especially helpful if your organization has trucks available for big rescues, since most of our volunteers drive smaller vehicles.

Still have questions? Contact us.

My organization has drivers available. Can they do food rescues?

I don’t have a 501c(3). Can my organization still receive food?

Yes! We work with a wide variety of groups, not just 501c’s.

You will need to demonstrate that the food from our rescues will be provided for free to DMV area residents with limited food access.

How soon will we get our first food rescue?

We cannot guarantee a timeline for matching a new partner to a food rescue.

We consider many factors such as proximity and food type to determine which Community Partner to pair with a new rescue.

Your food rescues will be dictated by your program’s needs.

We recover all kinds of food — nonperishable, raw, fresh, prepared, or frozen — and match new donations to where they will go to best use.

What type of food will my organization receive?

Join Our Network

Send us your organization’s name, mission, and food needs.

Request to Join

Our Operations team will vet your organization’s request, onboard you into our program and food rescue app, and begin looking for suitable donations.

Feedback from Our Partners

  • Sherita Evans, Single-Site Program Manager, So Others Might Eat

    Your ongoing collaboration continues to make a profound difference in our community, not only by meeting immediate food needs but also by bringing dignity, choice, and joy to the families we serve.

  • Cynthia Hall, Columbia Heights Village

    Our relationship with DC Food Rescue has afforded our organization to serve thousands of meals and place food where there would be empty spaces in some of our residents' refrigerators. The volunteers deliver with a smile and are always willing to help once they arrive. We would not be able to serve in the capacity that we do if it wasn’t for DC Food Rescue!

  • Judy Ingram, Director, NW Community Food

    Without DC Food Rescue, our pantry would be unable to serve the 100+ households to whom we provide food every week. DC Food Rescue provides us with free, fresh, and healthy food, and allows us to stretch our meager, donation-based food-purchasing budget.

  • Jenna von Elling, Luther Jackson Middle School Pantry

    Our partnership with DC Food Rescue has completely changed what we can offer our families. In addition to shelf stable items like rice, dried beans, and canned goods, we can now offer frozen meat, produce, fresh bread and even cookies for the kids. The variety is so wonderful, and well-received by our families.

  • Norma Hernandez, Harvey Hall Community Center, Affordable Homes & Communities

    We were able to support families who lost their jobs to have food at their tables; seniors who did not have enough money to get some desserts; and families to secure their food for their kids.

DC Food Rescue is powered by Food Rescue US