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Programs and Services
We carry out our vision of creating a hunger- free North Dakota and western Minnesota through targeted efforts in the following four service areas.   

Food Recovery

The Great Plains Food Bank recovers surplus food and grocery product donated by the local, regional and national food industry, and then distributes it to charitable feeding programs across North Dakota and Clay County, Minnesota.  This product is often overproduced, mislabeled or nearing its code date.  In addition, food is received from schools, congregations, civic groups and businesses that conduct community food drives, USDA commodities, and purchased when not available through donation.  Additional recovery efforts include:
  
Perishable Food Recovery Program:  Surplus prepared meals, frozen and perishable product is rescued from grocery stores, bakeries, restaurants, hospitals, colleges, schools and grocery wholesalers in the Fargo-Moorhead and Bismarck-Mandan communities, and then distributed to shelters, soup kitchens and emergency food pantries.

Retail Store Donation Program:  Food and grocery product is recovered from big-box retailers such as Target, Walmart and Sam's Club that now include groceries as part of their product mix.

Fresh Produce Initiative:  In partnership with five other food banks in the Upper Midwest and local growers and distributers, the Great Plains Food Bank fills critical dietary needs by bringing in regular loads of surplus fruits and vegetables from around the country for use by our partner agencies. 

USDA Commodity Program (TEFAP):  The Great Plains Food Bank distributes surplus USDA foods provided by The Emergency Food Assistance Program through contracts with the states of North Dakota and Minnesota.  These products greatly supplement food supplies at local pantries, soup kitchens and shelters.

Best Buy Purchase Program:  High demand products (i.e. protein items, paper products and special dietary need items) are purchased from manufacturers and brokers around the country at deep discounts with the savings passed on to our partner agencies – allowing them to fill gaps or shortages in donated products.

Kids in Distressed Situations (K.I.D.S.):  As the North Dakota provider, surplus children's clothing, toys and books are received from clothing and toy manufacturers and retailers and distributed throughout our partner network to agencies serving children and families. 

Food Distribution

Upon recovery, the Great Plains Food Bank disperses this surplus food and grocery product to a network of charitable feeding programs serving those who are hungry or homeless.  Partner agencies include food pantries, emergency shelters, soup kitchens, afterschool programs, senior programs, addiction centers and domestic violence shelters.  Monthly, our fleet of trucks delivers product to our partner network at nine regional distribution sites statewide.  Additional product distribution efforts include:

Mobile Food Pantry:  Our semi truck serves as a food pantry on wheels.  We roll into under-served counties across North Dakota that don't have, or can't support a traditional food pantry.  With volunteer support from the communities we are serving, pre-packed food boxes are distributed directly off the back of the truck to people in need.  Learn more

Outreach Pantry Program:  Ready-made food boxes assembled at the Great Plains Food Bank warehouse are delivered to churches, senior service providers or other sites in the smallest, most rural communities in North Dakota who then distribute the boxes to those in need.  Learn more

Rural Restock Program:  We take additional shipments of food directly to food pantries operating in rural, under-served counties.  This eliminates an identified transportation hardship placed on pantry volunteers, while ensuring their food supply is adequate to serve all those in need.


Building Capacity

1 in 11 people seek emergency food assistance from programs supplied by the Great Plains Food Bank - nearly 40% of them are children.  To support them in their work and offer support to the clients they serve, the Great Plains Food Bank offers the following services:

Agency Capacity Building Program:  Regional meetings and individualized training, support and resource materials are provided on a variety of topics including safe food handling, best practices in operating a food pantry, marketing and fundraising, volunteer recruitment and client accessibility.  In addition, infrastructure grants are awarded for freezers, refrigerators and other equipment and freezers, refrigerators, shelving and other equipment necessary for them to meet increasing client demand, improve safe food handling, store additional product and strengthen program efficiencies.  

SNAP Outreach Program:  Partnering with the ND Dept. of Human Services we distribute Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) eligibility materials, an educational toolkit, and corresponding trainings to our partner agencies, ensuring those experiencing hunger have access to every available food assistance resource necessary to meet their needs. 


Lending Client Support

Backpack Program:  In partnership with schools operating in the Fargo and West Fargo school districts, we supply a backpack filled with kid-friendly food for low-income children to take home with them, ensuring they have an adequate supply of nutritious food over the weekend. For more information click here.

Disaster Relief Program:  Partnering with the Feeding America food bank network and national manufacturers, the Great Plains Food Bank provides food and cleaning products to hunger-relief partners serving those impacted by natural disaster.

In accordance with Federal law and U.S. Department of Agriculture policy, this institution is prohibited from discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age, or disability.  To file a complaint of discrimination, write USDA, Director, Office of Adjudication, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C. 20250-9410 or call toll free (866) 632-9992 (Voice).