Loudon Food Pantry provides food to qualified people that live in Belmont, Canterbury, Chichester and Loudon NH. People that need our services must show proof of residency, proof of income and proof of other services they receive. These guidelines are set by the United State Department of Agriculture (USDA). Collecting this information and giving out the food is the easy part.
Let’s pretend we’ve received a food donation (non-perishable items only) and follow it along its process. It is assigned a number for tracking purposes and then it is put into quarantine until the following week. After quarantine, the real processing begins. All contents are checked for expiration dates (we do not hand out expired food). The expiration date is written on the front of the item so it can easily be seen. All expired food is put into our “farm” box and given to farmers that will use it to feed their animals. Then one line is marked through all the UPC (bar) codes. A store will not accept it as a return in this condition. On to the next step…
Each item will be given a predetermined category number and item number (15-31 = Vegetable – Corn 15 oz). A label is created that includes the donation number, category, and item number. All the items are listed on donation log sheet (this is our incoming inventory figures). They are put back in their container and sent to our Quality Control (QC) Department.
In our QC Department, all items are taken out and the item number is input into a computer and compared. All items are double checked against the donation log sheet and any corrections made. When all is confirmed, the items move onto a cart and are ready for the stockroom.
In the stockroom, the items are sorted by year, then by month. This is what determines their location. Most items can be put on the display shelves (these are shelves that we take from to feed those in need). The items that we have an abundance of will be put into boxes by year and month and put into stock. The stock is used to restock the display area. We have a stockroom system in place to track all boxed stock.
That’s what happens to the physical donation. The donor information (we do not sell or trade any of your information) and donation log sheet (incoming inventory) is input into our database. From there the food is costed and we used these figures when we send you a donation letter in January of the following year.