Hawaii Foodbank raises over $278K during annual Food Drive Day

News admin September 1, 2026 0 Comments

Hawaii Foodbank raises over $278K during annual Food Drive Day

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – The Hawaii Foodbank raised a total of $278,241 during Saturday’s annual Food Drive Day and through online giving in the weeks leading up to the Aug. 29 drive.

This year’s donations nearly match last year’s drive, which raised $279,284.

The nonprofit also collected 1,901 pounds of shelf-stable food at Ka Makana Ali’i (670), Pearlridge Center (635), and Ala Moana Center (596).

Support grows after recent disaster

Food insecurity affects approximately 463,000 individuals across the state, with thousands more on the verge — especially in the aftermath of Hurricane Lala.

“We had so many families who just can’t afford to lose their refrigerators full of groceries, so we really stepped up,” said Amy Miller, president and CEO of Hawaii Foodbank.

Miller said every June 30th, the food bank distributes more than 26 million pounds of food into the community because of donations and volunteer effort.

She added that Food Drive Day is the Hawaii Foodbank’s biggest day of the year. It’s also an important time to get the word out, especially with the recent storms that impacted the islands.

“We had all of the disasters and more and more people are seeking food assistance,” Miller said.

The event is also something that volunteers look forward to as well, Miller said.

“It really feels good. It’s like one of the things at Hawaii Food Bank that we always feel really proud about to have community helping community, neighbors helping neighbors,” she said.

Community leaders rally to address hunger

U.S. Rep. Jill Tokuda, D-Hawaii, was at one of the drop-off sites in support of Food Drive Day.

“Hunger doesn’t discriminate,” she said. “There should never be shame in going to a food distribution, asking the food bank and so many other of our pantries for help if they need it. Because we don’t want people making impossible choices right now, like we know they are.”

Hawaii Foodbank asks those who can donate shelf-stable food, especially proteins like canned tuna and chicken, or monetary contributions.

Miller added that the food bank is grateful for any donations people can make.

Monetary donations matched to double impact

Hawaii Foodbank’s partners and sponsors doubled every dollar donated to the food drive campaign, matching contributions up to $75,000.

“One thing that we’ve learned over the years at Hawaii Foodbank is that we really have quite an ability to stretch a dollar, because we buy a container load and we have these amazing partnerships,” Miller said.

“So on average, every dollar that the Hawaii Foodbank spends is the equivalent of about $5 that any of us could do if we go to the store. So we wanted to make it easy for people to support by donating dollars and, again, really stretching those out,” Miller said.

Hawaii News Now is a proud partner of the annual event.