When someone in our community finds themselves in a crisis, they can come to Food for Others so that they do not have to sacrifice feeding their families full, healthy meals during their time of need.

Those who visit the Food for Others warehouse take home “emergency groceries,” which are boxes of food that last the family up to five days while they are struggling to obtain enough nutritious food. While many associate food bank distributions with high-calorie, low-nutrition food items like canned goods, Food for Others is committed to providing our clients with all the foods they will need to feed their families balanced meals.

Here are 5 items Food for Others distributes which may surprise you:

1. Milk & Eggs – Each family that visits the warehouse for emergency food receives a gallon of milk and a dozen eggs. Food for Others relies on donations to purchase the milk and eggs for our clients.

2. Fruits & Vegetables – Access to enough fresh produce is essential to leading a healthy lifestyle. When children do not get enough fruits and vegetables, it puts them at greater risk of developing long term health problems like heart disease, obesity and diabetes. Each family who comes to Food for Others is provided with plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables. This week, we received our first shipment of produce from the Capital Area Food Bank’s Healthy Pantry program. This program will allow us to give our clients fresh fruits and vegetables during the winter months, outside the harvest season of local farms.

3. Meat – At FFO, we have a large walk-in refrigerator as well as a walk-in freezer which allow us to store donated meats from grocery stores. Families who visit FFO are able to take home frozen meats like beef, chicken, turkey, or fish.

4. Laundry Detergent, Toiletries – When FFO receives donations of items like laundry detergent, body wash, shampoo or conditioner, we are able to distribute them to families while supplies last.

5. Diapers– Through a partnership with Fairfax Diapers, families with young children are able to take home diapers when they visit the FFO warehouse.