Who We Help
Maui Food Bank is Maui County’s primary safety net for hunger relief. The Food Bank provides safe and nutritious food to anyone in Maui County who is at risk of going hungry. Of those served, 40% are children and youth. Working with more than 100 distribution partners and programs, the Food Bank distributes safe and nutritious food to individuals, families, kids, the working poor, seniors on fixed incomes, the homeless and anyone who is at risk of going hungry. This includes people in need living in the rural communities of Hana, Molokai and Lanai.
Our Partner Agencies
To make the best possible use of resources, Maui Food Bank has developed a unique system of over 100 partnering agencies. This collaborative network approach makes it possible for the food bank to operate a comprehensive and efficient, community-wide food distribution program on a surprisingly cost-effective basis.
Our History
Since Maui Food Bank was incorporated as a non-profit in 1994, we have continuously and consistently expanded food bank services for the residences of Maui County. Maui Food Bank is the only nonprofit in Maui County that collects, warehouses and distributes mass quantities of perishable and nonperishable food items to those in need.
How We Operate
Incorporated in 1994, Maui Food Bank has 25 full-time and part-time staff members. Volunteers contribute significantly to warehouse operations by inspecting, sorting and shelving donated food. Maui Food Bank operates from three warehouses in Kahului, Wailuku, and Lahaina covering a total of 21,500 square feet.
Running a food bank operation is a labor-intensive endeavor. We collect food on a daily basis from all over the island; most of it is donated, and the rest is purchased at wholesale prices or less. During the year we also ship from the mainland over 50 containers of safe and nutritious food to Maui.
Everything we bring in goes through an intake inspection. It is then sanitized, inventoried, and stored until it can be distributed. Food shipments to Lanai and Molokai are also pulled and palatalized in our warehouse.
Each step of the operational process is regulated by strict adherence to the Warehouse Operations Manual, a definitive guide published by Feeding America, a national organization that outlines Good Warehouse Practices, Safety and Sanitation Requirements, and other vital criteria for non-profit food dissemination organizations.
