AIBU to think that donating tinned tomatoes to the food bank shows a real lack of understanding of food poverty?

[BernadetteRostankowskiWolowitz]

The food bank donation box at my local supermarket this morning had a fairly good mix of items, apart from about a third of the tins were tinned tomatoes.

Surely it would be better all round to donate products which need little to no additional ingredients?

Tinned tomatoes are a base - they will never be a meal in their own right. They need at the bare minimum, some seasoning and or some veg or protein to make them useable.

And then even if you could rustle up some other ingredients to make them palateable/nutritious, you need to heat them - if they contain meat or lentils they need a good length of time on the heat.

Those using food banks likely cannot give over 20mins on the hob for tinned tomatoes. The cost of heating up the food (if there is even funds on the meter) is too high for the return.

I do think that people who donate tinned tomatoes, come at it from a reasonably comfortable point of view - just chuck it in with some mince and a bit if garlic and slow cook it for a couple of hours.

All of which is likely to be outside of the financial scope of the recipient.

Kind of not the point, but you should always buy whole tinned tomatoes rather than chopped, all other things being equal. The nice tomatoes go into the whole tomato tins, the gross ends and raggedy bits of tomatoes that are half underripe or that had to have the rot cut out go into the "chopped" tomato tins. You can cut them up right in the tin with a small knife or use a potato masher once they're in the saucepan.

@PlausibleSuit

I have some experience of working with people who use these services, so my opinion is formed mainly from my conversations with them.

So do I. More often than not the food banks ask for them. The people who use the food banks ask for them.

They're a flexible ingredient with a long shelf-life. They're easy to store and cheap. You can make all sorts with tinned tomatoes, from pasta sauces to curry to cake.

cake?! CAKE?????? I neeeeeeed to know how to do that!

I think it depends on who the food bank is aimed at. The one nearest me serves mainly homeless people, including people in temporary accommodation. So mainly people with little or no access to cooking facilities. They specifically ask for things that can be made with boiling water from a kettle or in a microwave. The one near when I used to work seems to attract a lot of families who live in the terraced housing there and I suspect have more cooking knowledge and facilities. Read what your local foodbank is asking for.

@IntermittentParps

There are all sorts of different circumstances among food bank users, so some absolutely can and do cook with basic ingredients. Yes, this. I always give a mix of things that are quite nutritious and filling while being quick and cheap to heat up on a ring or in a microwave (hearty soups, quick porridge etc) and 'basics' like cans of tomatoes and other things. People might easily have a stock of herbs/spices already, from previous food-bank shops or from when they CAN afford to use a normal food shop; or they may have access to veg, pulses etc from another source too.

In the 1990s, when I was in my 20s and living on practically no money, my ex-DP and I had loads of seasonings as he had a habit of stealing a single jar of herbs or spices every time we went shopping!

We paid for the rest of our shopping. But we also had a well stocked spice rack

(Not that I'm advocating this! I was young and feckless at the time.)

They’re one of the things the food bank I donate to asks for. That’s why I donate them.

@Sugarandtime

I suppose it’s better than the tinned oysters I saw donated at my child’s school harvest festival for the local food bank

Depends on the person who is receiving the parcel. If they cook from scratch which a lot of people now do they might find them really useful. Tinned oysters make beautiful fish soups / chowders / fish sauces & at a fraction of a price than shop bought and with minimal processing. We used to just mash a tin, marinate, cook, then strain, and then have over 1 litre of nam pla that would last well over a year.

Fry onions, add in tin of tuna then the tomatoes - eat with pasta. 20 mins, two hob rings. Feeds a family of four with very basic ingredients mostly available from food banks.

Heated up and on toast.

@CheesyWeez

Interesting thread. I didn't know you could ask the food bank what they need, ours is just a big box with no instructions on it AFTER the tills so I regularly forget to buy something but I sometime donate long life milk or tinned beef mince. I often wonder if I should be donating shampoo or sanitary products.

This post has renewed my interest in ensuring I donate the right thing.

Mines the same. They’ve just put it in at my local aldi and It’s normally met with me walking past going “fuck it”. I got in the habit at sainsburys / tesco (especially at Christmas with advent calendars or Easter eggs at easter) but for some reason I can’t get it in my head there’s one in aldi.

Tinned tomatoes with sausage chopped up in it, seasoned and mixed with pasta...cheese on top! Perfect dinner!

They're one of the few things that I've always kept in my cupboard, going back 30 years to when I was an impoverished student. Tinned tomatoes plus rice/pasta/jacket potato = cheap, easy and reasonably nutritious meal.

I've also been known to eat them straight out of the tin.

YABU.

It would really help if the supermarkets had labels on the shelves saying “your local food bank is short of this” as a reminder while your going round!

My dh bloody loves tinned tomatoes on toast ....l think they make the bread go soggy personally but there you go!

My food bank asks for them. I always check what’s needed. Last month it was toothbrushes.

Also for those of you asking what is most useful to donate to your food bank - the answer is cash. It is always cash. Buying actual groceries from Morrison's or whatever makes you feel good and more in control, but the money you would spend will go further if you just donate it to the food bank. They can buy what their patrons need, they aren't stuck with things they can't shift which take up too much space, and often the money goes further because they get special deals from companies who want to help them and they can buy in bulk or from wholesalers where needed. They can also pay for things like gas/electricity, fuel for delivery/collection vehicles, etc.

Sorry OP, I don't know the circumstances of the people who complained - maybe they just had a bad day, prefer treat type stuff or need support with their energy bills, but it's obvious you havent been there.

When single I had several times when £15 for a whole weeks shopping was all I had and a 14p can of tinned tomatoes and a couple of slices of dipped, buttered bread was a very welcome warm meal. Even better the heat from the cooker was a (much cheaper then electric heaters) way of adding a bit of warmth to a cold kitchen. Only ever cooked them for a few minutes though..

Even now if it's a tight month I will happily eat them - though fried bread is my favourite accompaniment nowadays!

Tinned tomatoes are versatile: I use them for pasta sauce and for the basis of vegetarian shepherd's pie (I use lentils) and vegetarian chili (kidney beans, chick peas, sweetcorn, black beans, onion etc) and vegetarian casseroles (bulghur and roast vegetables).

They're tasty, cheap, easily available, easy to store and don't require any preparation or any tools.

If I used a food bank, tinned tomatoes would be on my wish list.

@oxanj - this was what I was thinking too. There are whole cultures where eating a home cooked, made from scratch meal would be the very last thing to go when money is lacking. My dp comes from this background. Such families are going to prioritise what money they do have for gas or electric for cooking - and can do that if they can access the ingredients themselves via the food bank. It’s not hard to imagine people being in this situation, is it? And a real kick in the teeth if the fb said no, if you’re coming here you’re obviously not in a position to cook for yourself and must choose pre-made, filled with additives, etc. Takes away choice and agency.

It’s just as important as ensuring the needs of people who don’t have the resources to cook a meal are met.

@Sirzy

It would really help if the supermarkets had labels on the shelves saying “your local food bank is short of this” as a reminder while your going round!

I think it was Lidl who had cards / leaflets at the till for frequently requested items and you could just scan the card and donate the items to the foodbank. I thought it was a great idea as lots of people make impulse purchases at the tills.Also whilst people might not visit every aisle and see labels and request signs, everyone has to go through the till and having it easily accessible to grab made so much sense.

if you have a microwave and microwaveable containers tinned tomatoes take literally a couple of minutes to heat through. What you put with them can often be cooked in a microwave too.

Why wouldn’t someone who she’s a good bank not also have a slow cooker?
Also maybe tinned toms and pasta would work.
Lots of people who visit the food bank have good working hob or slow cooker!?

My supermarket has tinned tomatoes 4 for £1.20 and beans 4 for £1. I keep 2 for me and donate 2 every time i buy them. Same with tuna fish, 4 for £2.83. Keep 2 and donate 2. These are the food staples i live off and would want to receive from a foodbank if i needed to access one. Tins of fruit and veg are relatively cheap so i sometimes donate those as well.

Well, I think it's good to have more 'ingredients' than ready made stuff. It's a great skill to be able to know how to make meals from scratch and store cupboard ingredients - much cheaper in the long run.

@BernadetteRostankowskiWolowitz

I certainly didn't start this to do anything other than query why TTs were so heavily donated as (imo) they are not what I would think would be suitable

No, no you didn't. You said

AIBU to think that donating tinned tomatoes to the food bank shows a real lack of understanding of food poverty?

Not the same thing at all.

And you're SO wrong, as you can see. Wrong & your virtue signalling is well off the mark.

I have donated yeast before as I thought it might be useful if people make stuff from scratch. Can I ask what is wrong with mince pies with brandy in them?

Wow! Your post is not only insulting and sneery, but you clearly have no idea how food banks work and clearly have a very low opinion of the people who use them.