About the Branford Food Pantry

The Branford Food Pantry, Inc. is a 100% volunteer organization (IRS tax-exempt 501(c)3 corporation) created in 1978 by the local churches to provide supplemental food support to residents in need. We supply groceries for individuals, seniors, and families, including fresh meat and poultry, eggs, milk, fresh vegetables and fruit, and shelf-stable food, such as soup, peanut butter, and jam. We provide weekly snack packs for school-age children to ensure they have healthy snacks for school. And we offer complete, festive food baskets for the Thanksgiving and December holidays.

While we live in a prosperous shoreline town, many individuals and families who come to the Branford Food Pantry live at or below the poverty level. Others who seek our assistance live on fixed social security incomes. Simply put, after paying for the most essential human needs—housing, heat, electricity, health care —there is often not enough money for food. Amidst the global COVID-19 pandemic, the need is particularly acute because the national supply reaching food banks has been reduced and the economy has driven more families to our door.

The Branford Food Pantry relies on the Connecticut Food Bank to supply a significant portion of our food. This is supplemented by generous weekly donations from our local food stores as well as churches & community organizations and individual donations. In addition, we purchase fresh fruit and vegetables year-round, which is augmented in the summer by fresh produce from the Branford Community Garden.