Become a Partner Agency

Thank you for your interest in establishing a partnership with Sacramento Food Bank & Family Services. We currently support a network of 125 partner agencies to provide charitable food assistance to those in need throughout Sacramento County.

Steps to Becoming a Partner Agency

  1. Review the partner agency eligibility requirements below to determine if your agency is eligible to become a new partner.

  2. If you believe you meet all the eligibility requirements, complete the new agency interest form so we can learn more about your organization.

  3. Wait to hear back from our Partner Agency & Community Engagement (PACE) team. If there’s an opportunity for partnership, our PACE team will schedule a meeting to discuss the next steps in the application process.

Eligibility Requirements

An agency must meet the following criteria to be eligible for partnership with Sacramento Food Bank & Family Services:

  • Must be a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization or be operating under a parent organization that’s provided written authorization for the use of their 501(c)(3).

  • May not be a private foundation, even with a 501(c)(3) exemption.

  • Must have an established food distribution program that’s operated for at least 12 consecutive months with regularly scheduled days and hours.

  • Must operate a food distribution that’s open to the public and operates at least twice per month.

  • Must store and distribute food in a non-residential location that meets applicable local, state and federal health and safety requirements regarding the proper handling and storage of food.

  • Must intend to serve at least 100 households each month.

  • Must distribute donated products free of charge to low-income and food insecure individuals.

  • Must not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, sex, age, marital status, political affiliation, disability, sexual orientation, medical condition or nationality.

  • Must be willing and able to provide food without requiring the recipient to pay, pray or work to receive food.

  • Most provide donated products to participants of your food distribution. Selling or using donated products for other purposes, including exchanging them for property or services, is not permitted.

  • May not redistribute food or products to other food pantries, soup kitchens, shelters or other charitable groups or organizations.

  • Must have representatives with proper food safety training and certification. Food distributions are required to have at least one staff member or volunteer with a Food Handlers certificate, and soup kitchens (agencies preparing and serving meals) are required to have at least one staff member or volunteer with a Food Manager certificate. Soup kitchens must also have a current county health permit and operate from a commercially certified kitchen.

  • Must comply with local, state and federal laws regarding food preparation, storage, handling, sanitation and safety.

  • Must have strong volunteer or staff support to help with food distributions and other duties, such as food ordering, food pickup and reporting.

  • Must have the administrative ability to comply with recordkeeping and reporting requirements, including the ability to submit online reports.