To put wine and chocolate in the food bank?

[Nunyabusiness]

Picked up a miniature white wine and a 5 pack of twirls, husband was aghast. My view is that people who are struggling to feed their families wouldn't have funds for such treats.

(I did also put tinned fruit and veg in, by the way!)

Yes Queen, it's nothing to do with breastfeeding.

Thank you, thank you, you're all far too kind!
Re: baby milk, there is definitely no political/moral/twattish reason that a foodbank won't take formula. The primary concern of a foodbank is always ALWAYS to feed people that need food. I promise you nobody at any foodbank I am involved in would have any agenda to stop people from giving a baby formula. But. There are such strict rules around the storage and sale of baby formula, we have our stuff stored in shipping containers, it's for health and safety reasons, and not ever because someone has any kind of pro-breastfeeding lobbyists in their ear! We also don't nick stuff and as I said before, why would we put ourselves through all of that hard work, often in either the freezing cold or the boiling heat, lifting heavy bags of tins all day, listening to people's heartbreaking stories, comforting grandads, schoolkids, and homeless people - just so we can get a free tin of beans?? It quite literally makes no sense and unless someone has actually physically seen someone do this and reported it, the less said the better. It's a ridiculous accusation to be bandying around, and if any of my lovely colleagues saw someone else doing it, they'd be frogmarched off of the premises. It's so nice to read about how people are giving, and absolutely every element is a good thing to give, whether the staple items, treats, toiletries. All of these things will find their way to a person having the worst time of their life. A box of chocolates doesn't cancel out the pasta and tinned veg that we give people. Please read my above post for how it's all worked out and divided up in the warehouse. Ours is a shipping container, and in the summer we are boiled inside, in the winter absolutely freezing and we quickly lock up when finished as it's getting dark and we have no lights. We're really not there to pinch stuff, I can promise that.

Mygorg - thank you for everything you do x

Re: homeless/rough sleepers, where to cook etc. Every single person who comes into our foodbank is made a hot drink while their package is being prepped, we sit and talk to them and be sure that what we are giving them will be something that they are able to access to eat. Anyone without cooking facilities will be given a different parcel that we select in the wharehouse, it will have things like rice pudding with the peel off lid, tinned cooked fish, rice cakes etc etc. And we would send them off with disposable cutlery. Each person that turns up has a full chat, where we offer a bit of a shoulder to lean on and to make sure that everyone gets what they need and will use. We have called shelters, paid for cabs, rocked babies, petted dogs, and done homework, and always find or signpost to anything else that they could or should be accessing. I'm writing this with such a feeling of pride. I love the staff I work with, I really do. They're the kindest souls on earth. Endless patience and poise. I've learned a lot from them, and the people that come in.

Lovely idea but people who struggle to feed their families are often eating a disproportionate amount of sugar and junk food already There's practically nothing cheaper than bags of chocolate thingies and crisps so it's not exactly a rare treat. It's not wartime you know!

Nice cheese, good olive oil, olives and fresh vegetables - those are the sorts of luxuries that you can only dream of on a budget and the things that make a difference to your health. If you want to spoil the recipients, then buy some quality olives, or a cheeseboard set or something.

Those small bottles of wine are not for drinking I don't think either..? I've always used them for cooking! Just the right size for a risotto..

At our trussell trust Bank we pass any formula on to the local health visitors who make sure it goes the right way.

Have you read any of the posts explaining why items such as cheese can't be kept in a Foodbank hiphop?

I always let the children pick biscuits / cakes as treats in supermarket to put in box - when we put tims in we always make sure they have a ring pull as I worry incase people don't have tin openers

We have a food bank ccollection point at work. The bottles of wine are raffles by the local.housing association who then donate the money to the food bank.

Mygorg - the chap who runs our food bank has some serious health issues going on himself but he's still soldiering on selflessly getting the job done. I have only admiration and support for you guys.

Has hiphop got lost on the way to Goop? I can't even get riled at that post.

Note to the point if you don't want to decide what to donate just donate cash direct to the food bank - they know better than us what's required

Olives don't really make a meal, though, do they? Other than for those of us who can have an olives, cheese and fancy bread meal because we're eating square meals all the time otherwise. Does no one actually read the info food banks provide about what they want and why?

Snort at food bank recipients getting a jar of olives or a cheese board as a treat.

Yeah that's really going to cheer them up

The olives would have gone in the bin in my house as no one likes them at all and food banks don't accept fresh stuff

I read hiphop's post in the voice of Nigel Slater

If wine got donated to our food bank, it would go to the soup kitchen in the same town. They will use it at Christmas when they put on a Christmas lunch or it will get raffled off to raise more funds for the organisation. Both the food bank and soup kitchen are run by the same charity, so stuff goes between them that isn't suitable for one but is for the other.

E.g. once a lovely cash and carry donated about 20 bags of rice with about 10KG in each. Realistically, the food bank couldn't give those out but the soup kitchen was using them for months and were very grateful.

As for the chocolate, I don't see any issues with donating that. We always donate some nice things like that along with toiletries. Just because someone is using a food bank, it doesn't mean they become less human. That Twirl bar might be the only thing that makes them feel good that week. I volunteer, and when we make up a parcel for someone, we always try to put things like that in if we can.

Buttery - hiphop knows better obviously!

That documentary by Professor Green was pretty informative about foodbanks and how using them makes families feel.

Black Olives are no different to phone topups and Dove bodywash and Birthday cakes.

Some children in Surrey may enjoy olives. After all, most posters here like to add a 'treat'.

mygorgeousmilo thank you for the very insightful posts - you are a
I donate to my local Trussell Trust, and check the needs/non needs before hand.
Has it been mentioned up thread ( I may have missed it) that food banks are always under more pressure during school holidays, as children who do receive free school meals, do not get extra help during those times. So I always do and extra donation then.
I read on a previous thread on the subject that people in B & B accommodation may only have kettle/toaster and possible microwave, so my donations tend to be things which can make a meal using these.

blackheart the drop in centre I volunteer at (which distributes food boxes) DOES accept fresh food. In addition to the crates Tesco donate of food just past sell by, local companies often bring things over e.g. we've have wheels of Brie, eggs, fresh veg from someone's allotment, boxes of muffins.

Some things get put out front for clients to have with their coffee, some things get given to clients with their food.

If someone brought olives in I am sure they would get taken.

Many of the volunteers are people who have used the service at some point. They have a good understanding and show empathy.

And we would send them off with disposable cutlery

Would disposable cutlery be worth donating?

We can never have too much disposable cutlery. It always gets used, even if it's just to make drinks with or give soup. We don't have the facilities to wash dishes so all plates/cups/cutlery are disposable.

Only a couple of pages in and placemarking to finish tomorrow as I really must sleep. But the couple of posters who seem to be hellbent on stopping people donating? With the same old 'say you have a bad back and you will be given the world, no questions asked' (because draconian 'medicals' that frequently involve people in comas, or obviously severely disabled people as fit for work don't exist right ) 'I know the ins and outs of multiple peoples income situation, inlucing exactly what benefits they recieve and the fact that they are working cash in hand (whilst simultaneously being able to sit in the pub all day drinking or smoking weed in their front yards 24/7)..but do not report them as its obviously more useful to spout this bullshit on forums in the hope of turning others against the poor' and so on...shame on you. Seriously. So full of hate.

Will never understand how people can come onto threads like these, about people in genuine need, and pull this crap. If you disagree with donating to foodbanks and helping people who need help, fine. Good for you. Don't donate. But to actively try and discourage others from donating by making up lies? Totally wrong, and disgusting to boot.

Anyway, night all and will finish tomorrow. By then maybe a couple of new people who know all of these people falsely claiming disability benefits will have joined the thread. Hey, it could even be useful. Maybe these thousands upon thousands of people who somehow manage to 'beat the system' can teach the genuine disabled how they can actually recieve benefits they are entitled to, rather than be found fit over and over again when they are clearly anything but and have mountains of evidence from professionals to back this up. I mean, its a simple as saying you have a bad back right?

Living in America where the homeless and at need population is much larger means donations are needed. We donate branded items mainly. At Christmas we donate new gifts for the children.

We do a lot with the boys and girls club and set up a birthday party package for kids whose families can't afford to celebrate their birthday. We pay for a cake from our local supermarket that makes fab cakes (think sheet cake which is Disney themed or self styled), candles and if they want a party we pay for the space and they can pick a theme from 6 options (Mickey mouse, paw patrol etc). Of course catering is included.

Different charities have different criteria which is based on the needs of the people they are helping. If those they are helping don't eat pork or have diabetes certain foods won't be found on their wanted list. Always ask.

And I've said the cheats have been reported. Makes no difference. These are not jsut a few people - they are Dps immediate neighbours,

Still lurking and reading when I should be sleeping

But this is just silly. You could get people to possibly believe you personally know one person..who lets you know the complete ins and outs of their financial situation, who is claiming multiple benefits (disability ones too, which are a lot more complicated than simply saying 'I have a bad back' and being awarded them. No proof = no award. Lots of proof = sometimes no award too) whilst also working cash in hand, bragging about this to all the workers around them, and somehow finds the time to still be constantly taking drugs and in the pub all the time, smoking, with their 78 inch plasma and sky sports package.

But to claim you know multiple people like this. Who have all been reported and nothing done..even though the things they have been reported for will be easy to prove (and benefit fraud reports are taken very very seriously, with 3,000 more benefit fraud investigators than investigators whom focus on tax evasion, despite evasion costing over 3x more*) if they are as blatant as you would have us all believe....

Well bluntly, its just fantasy.

I don't understand what you actually have to gain by making obviously false posts like this? You need to make it semi-believable I am afraid.

As I said, maybe you could get away with claiming that you know one person who does all of this. Maybe its plausible this one pisstaker has been lucky so far in not being caught when reported (though if they are quite as blatant as you say, this wouldn't happen either, unless you think fraud investigations officers have no training or experience at all in what they do) but several cases like this, in the same area, all known by the same person...well

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* 3765 benefit fraud investigators V 700 or so on evasion among the wealthiest. 1.3bn lost to illegal benefit fraud V 4.4bn illegal tax evasion (7bn when adding tax avoidance, which is actually legal)

fullfact.org/economy/do-benefit-fraud-investigators-outnumber-tax-inspectors-ten-one/