Oregon Letter Carriers Hope to Collect 2 Million Pounds of Food

Most wanted foods include: tuna fish, soups, stews, chili, canned fruits, vegetables, beans, rice and pasta.

Photo courtesy: oregonfoodbank.org

(PORTLAND, Ore. ) - Close to 3,000 letter carriers throughout Oregon and Clark County, Wash., will join with letter carriers across America to collect donations of nonperishable food from their postal customers during the annual National Association of Letter Carriers Food Drive on Saturday.

Look for a yellow, plastic food drive bag in your mail during the first week of May. Fill the bag with nutritious, nonperishable food and place it by your mailbox early on Saturday. Letter carriers will collect nonperishable food donations left by mailboxes and take them to their local post office. Trucks will pick up the food and deliver it to regional food banks of the Oregon Food Bank Network. All donated food stays in the community where it was collected.

This year's goal is to collect two-million pounds of food during the National Association of Letter Carriers Food Drive. Last year's NALC Food Drive raised more than 1.6 million pounds of food throughout Oregon and southwest Washington.

Most wanted foods include: tuna fish, soups, stews, chili, canned fruits, vegetables, beans, rice and pasta.

Do NOT include glass items, homemade items or previously opened containers.

"Food drives like National Association of Letter Carriers provide a critical source of much needed nutritious, shelf-stable food," says Rachel Bristol, OFB's executive director and CEO. This high-quality food is particularly important for the growing bodies and brains of the estimated 72,000 children each month who eat meals from emergency food boxes."

For more information or to make a cash donation, call 1-800-777-7427 or (503) 282-0555 or visit wwww.oregonfoodbank.org.