Why You Shouldn't Donate Homemade Baked Goods To Food Drives

Baking is often a labor of love, and it's incredibly gratifying when you get to share your baked goods with others. Unfortunately, this doesn't extend to your local food drives, even if your heart is in the right place and your festive chocolate chip cookies are delicious. 

Donating to food drives is a great way to aide folks who are struggling, but there are limits on the kinds of things you can donate. Usually, things like opened food and expired items won't be accepted, but most drives also prohibit homemade food. Now, this might sound silly; after all, people need food, you're a good cook, and you want to help out. However, food drives have good reasons for turning away homemade baked goods. Unlike prepackaged items, food banks have no way of knowing what ingredients were used, which can be a big deal when considering food allergies. Likewise, they can't confirm whether the food was prepared in a clean environment. So, to prevent potential foodborne illness or allergic reactions, food banks will usually only accept prepacked and properly labeled goods. 

However, that doesn't mean you can't use your baking skills to give back in other ways. There are other organizations aside from your local foodbank that would be more than happy to accept your carrot cake cupcakes, sugar cookies, and decadent chocolate cakes.  

Although food drives won't accept homemade baked goods, there are other ways you can put your baking skills to good use if you want to help your community. For example, you can reach out to homeless shelters, food kitchens, or churches that provide services for those in need and see if they'll accept homemade baked goods. Even if they can't take goods baked at home, some may allow you to bake in their kitchens where the food can be served fresh to people who need it. There are also organizations like Bake4Sake and ForGoodnessCakes that are centered around baking for those who need it most. 

Other places you can potentially take your baked goods include your local fire station and library. Sometimes, local libraries will host gatherings and special programs where snacks would be extremely welcome. Alternatively, you can always bake for your neighbors. Not only is this a great way to get to know the folks who live around you, but it's also a fantastic way to foster a real sense of community. You might even consider using BuyNothing, a global project centered around giving. (And, what could be better to give than a plate of bakery-style peanut butter cookies?) There are so many ways you can use your baking skills to benefit the community around you. It may take some asking around, but once you find that perfect outlet, you can start to do some real good.