Leadership in a Food Pantry

While this blog focuses on hunger and food pantries, Ieadership must also be involved if we expect any results. Most of my “staff” are volunteers, although WAFER has six half-time employees. Here are three lessons learned about leadership in a food pantry, though most apply to leadership in any type of organization, from a simple project to an international corporate setting.

1. Let people do their work. You might know how to do someone’s job better than they can, but they are with you to do that job, so let them. Correct them only if what they are doing is detrimental to the success of the project. In other words, do not micromanage.
For the most part, people take pride in the work they do, but that pride suffers if they are constantly supervised. If you have a weekly volunteer who stocks the shelves, let them determine where items should go. There’s no need for a manager or a leader to get involved.

2. Mind your own business. I have a colleague who, if I leave the office for another part of the pantry, finds a reason to be where I am. This person suddenly needs to check on something or something where I happen to be. Minding your own business is a follow up to letting people do their work. If you do not need to be involved, stay out. This does not mean complete laissez faire, as it is important you know what is going on in your organization. However, it does not mean you need to know the result of every phone call or interaction.

3. Respect your clients or customers. Many of those coming to a food pantry do so as a last resort; there is no reason for them to be happy, or even grateful. While it is fun to help someone who thanks you, not all clients can vocalize their thanks. Some are mad simply because they’ve been reduced to needing a food pantry’s help. Instruct your staff, volunteers or paid, to treat each client on an individual basis, as if that client were the only one of the day. Some clients need more time than others and, unless the line of clients waiting is extremely long, make eye contact (unless culture prevents this), avoid shouting, even if it means more legwork, and thank the client for coming to your pantry.

This list reflects the very basics of good leadership in a food pantry setting. For more information, read books by Peter Drucker, John Kotter, and successful CEOs like Meg Ryan.

Fast Food

Fast food is considered cheap food and, while this may have some substantiation, it is rarely as cheap, or as healthy, as preparing the same items at home.


Let's take the example of a cheeseburger, fries, and soft drink. On average, a meal of this type purchased at a fast food restaurant costs about $5.50. If the same ingredients are purchased in a grocery store and the meal prepared at home, the cost is about $2.00 less, even figuring in the energy costs involved in preparing the food. (Transportation costs between driving to and from the grocery store and the restaurant likely balance each other out.)

Naturally, preparing food from scratch takes longer, but the result generally tastes better, is more economical, and is healthier (the home cook has more control over the ingredients). However, even a hamburger and fries will likely take less than 45 minutes to fully prepare.

Some fast foods do not translate to the home cook quite so easily. Pizza, for example, is time consuming (the dough must rise) and difficult to reproduce (high oven temperature and proper pans). However, tacos, hamburgers, baked potatoes, and pasta dishes can be prepared at home for less money than needed to purchase these meals.

Cooking at home has advantages in addition to the economic ones. Children in the household may show interest in cooking, more food variety is available, and families eat together without the distraction of background noise, other conversations, and the temptation to purchase other food items.

Healthy People 2020

The United States has issued Healthy People 2020 to help combat the levels of obesity and health concerns associated with poor nutrition in our country. Research suggests those in poverty tend to eat less nutritiously as cheap foods tend to be high calorie. In some instances, particularly in large areas of poverty, little more than fast food restaurants and convenience stores may be available for food purchase.

Food Pantries know all too well that cheap foods are often less nutritious. In order to fill its shelves, WAFER relies on finding lost cost foods. Much of the time, this means filling the pantry with sugary cereals, salty soups and canned foods, and very little fresh produce or dairy items. If a food pantry, working on a restricted budget cannot supply highly nutritious items to its clients, how can the clients put highly nutritious meals on their own tables?

We must make more of an effort to educate the public as to how to help feed people in poverty. We must do more to locate left-over and overflow foods with higher nutritional quality.

However, at the same time, we must do more to help those in poverty make smarter food choices, even when healthy food availability is low.