My neighborhood has a little free food pantry that I fill weekly. Problem is, I’ve been finding it difficult to provide a well-rounded variety of foods. Fresh fruit and veg are not allowed.
Any ideas for items I can stock? I try to keep each item under $2 to get the most bang for my buck.
My go-tos are:
*Rice.
*Oats.
*Beans, dried and canned (these usually go slowly)
*Baking mixes, flour, sugar, yeast.
*Canned veggies.
*Condensed soup.
*Oil.
*Evaporated milk.
*Condiments.
*Canned chicken, tuna, and salmon.
*Applesauce.
*Spices.
Thanks ahead of time for any ideas. Can’t seem to get the formatting working on mobile but you get the gist.
What you’ve listed is already really good for staples, if someone has the time and motivation to cook they can do a lot with that. I might suggest some things that are easier to eat straight up, or at least with very little prep. It can be really hard to make a proper meal when you’re in a tough situation, especially when you’re just taking care of your self. Dried fruits (like raisins or apricots) might be a good add in particular, some specific ideas though:
Some knorr pasta(or rice) sides, or other similar things would probably be good, basically just pasta and dehydrated sauce. Between $1.30 and 1.50 per 4.4 ounce pouch depending on the variety (about 450 calories in a pack). Shelf stable, decently appealing, and can be made quickly and easily (microwave or on stove tops). They aren’t super nutritious, but they’re a good bases for canned chicken/tuna or frozen/canned veggies, even if someone just eats them plain they’re better than a bag of chips or other junk food.
Maybe nori could be worth it? Particularly the snack packs, sometimes you can find a big pack of those for a good price. Easy to eat, good nutrition, storable. I’ve found them for as little as 48¢ a pack at stores like Costco or Walmart. Cheaper at good international groceries. I’m hesitant to suggest these as they’re pretty insubstantial for the cost, but they can fill in gaps in nutrition and add some variety.
Dates are a great option if you can find them for a good price. They’re easy to eat, last on the shelf, good nutrition and don’t need prep, and kids love them. The big tubs are really good price per weight, but for a food pantry, smaller packs would probably be better, $5 dollars for an 8oz pack is fairly easy to find if it’s not a fancy brand.
Maybe instant mashed potatoes (AKA dried potatoes flakes). Not exactly super nutritionally complex if they’ve been pealed before processing, but they’re filling, easy to prepare, very shelf stable and cheap. Good base to add other stuff to as well. Packets are like $1.40 per 4 ounce packet (about 440 calories.) .