Donate Food – Community Emergency Services

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At CES our Food Shelf and Home Delivery Programs strive to provide equitable access to healthy and familiar foods to the communities that we serve.

We operate in a culturally diverse neighborhood, many of our visitors are Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC), including immigrant families from East Africa, West Africa, Latin America, and South East Asia. Therefore many of our high need items are culturally specific foods!

Our goal is to provide varieties that best meet those needs, including culturally universal and culturally specific food options in our food programs. We rely on food donations from individuals, faith-communities, businesses and schools, along with financial donations and grant funding, to help keep our shelves stocked. This makes it possible to provide healthy, sustainable, and culturally connected access to food.

Please consider partnering with us in giving intentionally,

these items are always in HIGH NEED:

COOKING & BAKING

Oils (vegetable/olive), Sugar, Wheat flour, Maseca Flour, Spices (Salt, Pepper, Garlic Powder, Onion Powder, Chilli Powder, Cumin, Turmeric, Ginger, Curry Powder), Honey, Fish Sauce

CANNED & JARRED

Jar Pasta Sauce, Meat Chilis and Beef Stews, Hearty/Chunky Soups, Peanut Butter, Applesauce, Canned Vegetables, Canned Fruits, Canned Tuna and Sardines, Diced Tomatoes (plain), Canned Hominy

DRIED

Pasta, Rice Noodles, White Rice, Dry Lentils, Dry Black Beans, Dry Black-Eyed Peas, Dry Great Northern Beans, Instant Oatmeal, Ramen noodles (Chicken Flavor), Cereal, Snack Crackers

BEVERAGES

Small Bags Ground Coffee, Black Tea, Shelf Stable Almond Milk & Coconut Milk, Fruit Juices

HYGINE & CLEANING

Paper Products (Toilet Paper, Paper towels & Tissues), Dish Soap, Laundry detergent (smaller bottles or pods), Shampoo & Conditioner (neutral scents), Body Wash & Bar Soaps (unscented, mild or neutral scents preferred), Hair oils & Creams for textured, curly, and natural hair types, Menstrual Products, Toothpaste & Toothbrushes, Deodorant, Shave Cream & Razors

BABY PRODUCTS

Diapers, Baby Wipes, Small Jars of Baby Food

Donations are accepted Monday – Friday (weekends by appointment)

Please use the call box to the left of the front glass doors and someone will assist you.

For donations of 20 or more grocery bags, we ask that you set-up a drop-off appointment by calling 612-870-1125 or by emailing info@cesmn.org.

Single Item Donation Drives:

At times, it is very helpful for us to receive a large quantity of one type of food item. This is especially helpful for our Home Delivery Program where we pre-pack groceries with foods that many of our neighbors enjoy such as sugar, cooking oil, rice, and pasta sauce. Contact us to learn more about how a Single-Item Donation drive can help meet one of our current needs (info@cesmn.org).

Items we are NOT able to accept:

Extra-large cans or bulk-sized foods
Opened packages or partially used foods
Expired food
Homemade foods or baked goods

Due to food safety regulations, we are unable to accept perishable items such as meat, eggs, dairy, frozen meals, or deli foods unless they are from a licensed business.

We DO, however, accept fresh fruits, vegetables, and bread.