ANCHORAGE, AK — Easy Peasy! Helping those who struggle with hunger in Alaska communities is as easy as placing some non-perishable food in a bag and leaving it next to your mailbox prior to mail delivery on Saturday, May 11. Carriers and volunteers will collect the food and deliver it to local food banks and pantries.

This is the 27th year for the Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive, which has collected more than 1.6 billion pounds of food since its inception. Last year alone 71.6 million pounds of non-perishable food was donated nationwide – 100,000 pounds in the Last Frontier State.

Some of the Alaska Post Offices and letter carriers collecting food on their routes for those in need on May 11 include: Anchorage, Eagle River, Fairbanks, Homer, Juneau, Kenai, Ketchikan, Kodiak, Palmer, Soldotna and Wasilla.

The food drive’s timing is crucial. Food banks and pantries often receive the majority of their donations during the Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday seasons. By springtime, many pantries are depleted, entering the summer low on supplies at a time when many school breakfast and lunch programs are not available to children in need.

While all non-perishable donations are welcome, foods that are high in protein such as canned tuna, salmon, beans and peanut butter are most needed. Canned fruits and vegetables, whole grain, low sugar cereals, macaroni and cheese dinners and 100% fruit juice also top the list of most needed items.
For additional information about this year’s Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive, visit nalc.org/community-service/food-drive.

WHAT TO GIVE: Most-wanted foods include:

• Canned meats (tuna, chicken, salmon).
• Canned and boxed meals (soup, chili, stew, macaroni and cheese).
• Canned or dried beans and peas (black, pinto, lentils).
• Pasta, rice cereal.
• Canned fruits.
• 100 percent fruit juice (canned, plastic or boxed).
• Canned vegetables.
• Cooking oil.
• Boxed cooking mixes (pancake, breads).

WHAT NOT TO GIVE:

• Rusty or unlabeled cans.
• Glass containers.
• Perishable items.
• Homemade items.
• No expired items
• Noncommercial canned or packaged items.
• Alcoholic beverages or mixes or soda.
• Open or used items.

Led by letter carriers represented by the National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC), with help from rural letter carriers, other postal employees and other volunteers, the Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive is the largest one-day food drive in the nation with more than 10,000 cities and towns across America participating.

The Postal Service receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations.

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