Who We Are 
The Food Bank of Northwest Indiana was founded in 1982. It was originally a barn, but has grown into a facility that acquires, stores and distributes 3.5 million pounds of food throughout Lake and Porter Counties. It is a USDA approved, primary distributor of food to local pantries, shelters, day care centers, and soup kitchens. The Food Bank is an affiliate of Feeding America™, the nation's largest food bank network. For almost three decades, the Food Bank has served as a link for food relief to families, the elderly, children and other individuals in need.
Our Programs
The BackPack Program - The BackPack program provides low-income children with a free food filled bag packed with six easy to prepare meals for the weekend break from school. Currently, the Food Bank feeds more than 200 children and packs 3,600 backpacks filled with food.
Kids Café®
Kids Cafe® is a national program founded by Feeding America and administered locally by the Food Bank of Northwest Indiana. It is a place where children through 18 years of age can come to receive free, nutritious evening meals in a safe, supportive environment.
Mobile Pantry
Often times, the Food Bank identifies extremely distressed communities that do not have access to a traditional food pantry. In this situation, the Food Bank will serve as a mobile pantry unit and will arrive at a location such as a community center and provide free grocery items to the community. To date, the Food Bank has distributed more than 180,000 pounds of food to 1,000 families and seniors.
Community Cupboard 
Many of those who are working poor cannot access food pantries do to scheduling conflicts with their jobs. We offer these people a chance to come by and shop in our store from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, well past normal food pantry hours. We also provide eligible clients with a $35 emergency food voucher to use while shopping. We offer milk, bread, pastries, produce and all other donated items free of charge. Our good are priced well below retail value so clients can get a whole lot of bang for their thirty five bucks. Anyone can come in and shop, but you must be a Lake or Porter County resident plus meet our financial eligibility guidelines in order to qualify for the voucher.
How You Can Help
You can help us carry out our mission by:
- Making financial donations
- Donating equipment you or your company no longer uses or that is being replaced
- Donating food from companies and food drives
- Volunteering
- Spreading the word
We are also in need of a new facility. The food bank hopes to find a generous benefactor with an appropriate building for sale/lease at a very low rate. Minimum building requirements are:
- 60,000 sq. ft. of warehouse space
- Office space for 6 persons
- Reception space
- Minimum of one dock
- Fridge space (500 sq. ft. minimum)
- Freezer space (600 sq. ft. minimum)
Food Bank of Northwest Indiana 
2248 W. 35th Ave.
Gary, IN 46408
Telephone: 219-980-1777
Fax: 219-980-1720
Email: info@foodbanknwi.org