Items not to include in a food donation

According to the Trussell Trust, the most important thing to remember when donating to a food bank is that items are in date and unopened. If an item is past its use-by-date, it can’t be given out.

Fresh cakes: because they tend to have short use-by dates, most food banks can’t store them. If you want to give a sweet treat, try a tin of custard instead.

Fresh fish: most food banks don’t have fridges so can’t store items like fresh fish. Tinned salmon or tuna would be a much better option.

Bread and baked goods: bread is a staple in most households but given its short shelf life, it’s not suitable to donate. If you want to donate festive items such as mince pies, check the use-by dates and if it’s less than a week then it’s best not to donate them.

Chocolate liqueurs: food banks don’t distribute any food or drinks with alcohol in them. It’s easy to forget that some chocolates contain alcohol, so best to miss out on chocolate liqueurs altogether.

Frozen pizza: most food donated is collected at collection points in supermarkets, then transported to food bank warehouses so a pizza would be defrosted long before it could ever make a meal for someone.

Anything that is out of date: to ensure that no one gets sick, food banks can only distribute food that is in date. Also, it’s important that the parcels are dignified, therefore don’t donate anything that you wouldn’t think about sharing with a loved one.

Here’s what you can donate (and not) to food banks this Christmas