Our partners are essential to our mission.
Working with its network of roughly 400 food assistance partners, the Capital Area Food Bank provides more than 50 million meals each year to our community. Our partners provide food and other services directly to those in need.
What exactly are Food Assistance Partners?
Food assistance partners are not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organizations that are passionate and prepared to serve the community. Partners receive food and health education materials from the food bank and distribute them through the Washington metropolitan area to help create access to good, healthy food in every community. There are all types of food assistance partners. They include organizations that offer food-related services like meal and grocery programs, along with organizations that focus on job training and housing assistance. The food bank supplies the food so that these organizations can focus their resources on other services.
Are you interested in becoming a partner of the Capital Area Food Bank?
The food bank considers many factors when evaluating applications for partnership, including but not limited to the way in which an organization’s size, location, and key services/activities fit into the needs of our current distribution network. For instance, we may prioritize partners in certain areas of our region where we have a small number of partners relative to the levels of need in that neighborhood.
To become a partner of Capital Area Food Bank, your organization must have:
- 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status;
- A designated budget solely for food procurement;
- Consistent access to a computer and internet, along with computer skills;
- Ability to participate in data collection initiatives;
- Designated food storage space that is sanitary, temperature-controlled, and not located in a private residence; and
- At least 3 months of experience operating food distributions.
We are grateful for the interest of all organizations that seek to partner with us! Please note that these are the minimum requirements for partnership. Meeting basic requirements does not guarantee partnership, and each application will be assessed individually based on current need.
Unfortunately, we are not able to approve all applications we receive, as there are instances where some or all the factors noted above may not align with the needs of our network at the moment. In the event we are not able to approve your current application, please know that our network is dynamic and regularly evolving, so partnership may be possible in the future as needs change.
If you can confirm all of the minimum requirements above, scroll down to Get Started! If not, learn about other ways you can help.
Get started!
The first step to become a CAFB Agency Partner is to participate in our online Partnering to End Hunger informational session. This session will provide comprehensive information about our partnership program.
Register for a Partnering to End Hunger session
Following the information session, a member of our team will follow up with details on completing an online Pre-Screening Form. If your pre-screening is approved, you will be invited to proceed with a full partnership application.
A full partnership application will ask for:
- Operating budget details, contact list, a business plan and other legal documents.
- Arrangements for a site visit to assess your space.
- Scheduling of necessary training with the Capital Area Food Bank.
Contact information: If you have additional questions, you can contact us at shoppingpartners@capitalareafoodbank.org or 202.644.9800