First, you need to contact your local food bank and inform them of your intentions.  Let them know that you are planning to be self-sufficient on this project but will need grocery bags, and a truck the night of the food drive or someone at the food bank so that you can deliver the food which will be boxed and sorted or can the food bank pick up the food November 1.  (Make sure a November 1 pick-up is fine with your host.  If you are running a school drive, make arrangements with the food bank with respect to school pick-ups.  Don’t wait until the last minute. 

You might  also ask whether there is enough space at the food bank for sorting the food on location or whether it should be sorted off site.

By sorting and boxing the food that night you reduce the amount of work food bank volunteers have to do.  The best boxes are banana boxes as they stack on skids/pallets easily.

For banana boxes, contact the produce manager of a local grocery store and ask if they have a stock available or if they could set some aside.  (Let the manager know what they are for.

If there is a school food drive as part of this project as well, connect with the school team leaders and find out where they are collecting the food and what would be a good time for the food bank to pick-up.

 Banana boxes are the best in that they are strong, stackable, and have handles.  They also have a hole in the bottom, but that can be filled with a piece of cardboard or avoided by strategic packing.  contact your local grocery stores for boxes.... A&P,  Food Basics, Loblaws, Loeb’s, No Frills, Zehrs, Dutch Boy etc...