The amount of food that is donated to hunger relief programs is not enough to feed everyone facing hunger. Moreover, these programs (foodshelves, on-site meal programs, etc.) cannot afford to purchase quality food staples at retail prices. But members of the Emergency Foodshelf Network (EFN) have the ability to purchase rare or high-demand items through EFN at below retail prices. Here’s how:
There are two different methods EFN uses to purchase and dispense bulk food: 1.) EFN purchases food at or below retail price and offers the product to agencies for the same price—if a can of peaches was purchased for $.50, EFN would offer the can to agencies at $.50. 2.) EFN purchases items that are in high demand, and regardless of the price it pays, offers these items at a discount price—if a can of baby formula cost $10, EFN may offer it to its agencies for $7 per can.
EFN’s ability to purchase large amounts of food below retail price points gives network members a solid resource for securing hard-to-obtain items. For example, cans of corn and boxes of pasta (essentials to any well-rounded diet) are often donated during food drives. But these items alone are not enough to make a nutritious meal. To ensure that the dietary needs of their clientele are met, foodshelves look to EFN for help in purchasing specialty or high demand items to complement the food collected through food drives. In 2006, EFN’s network of agencies purchased 606,742 pounds of food through the Bulk-Purchasing Program, saving $360,000.