HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – Cash and food donations went toward the Hawaii Foodbank’s annual food drive, which focuses on feeding the Ohanas of Hawaii.

The nonprofit said last weekend’s campaign raised nearly $274,000 and collected over 32,000 pounds of food donations.

That’s enough to prepare over 615,000 meals.

Nonprofit leaders said much of the support came through monetary donations.

“For a variety of reasons, there has been a gradual shift in Food Drive Day,” said a Hawaii Foodbank spokesperson.

One reason for this is the increasing popularity of online donations.

“I think it has become really easy for people to donate online (especially with First Hawaiian Bank’s matching opportunity this year, which has motivated a lot of online donations). Additionally, it coincides with this operational shift we’ve experienced at the Foodbank since the pandemic – where much of our model has shifted to proactively purchasing food to keep our shelves stocked (which allows us to prepare for disasters, purchase food at a much greater discount, and offer a wider variety of healthy/fresh and culturally important foods). With this change, many people are more comfortable donating money because they’ve become more aware that the Foodbank can really stretch their dollars further to make the greatest impact in the community.”

Did you miss the food drive? Donations are still being accepted at https://hawaiifoodbank.org/.

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