Started in 1999, with a small grant from UPS and a donated ‘retired’ beverage truck, the Foodbank made its first Mobile Food Pantry (MFP) delivery to a small parking lot in Santa Barbara; offering 800 pounds of food to 20 families.  In those days emergency food consisted of a loaf of bread, a bag of beans and a large chunk of cheese. 

Today, the Foodbank has 11 monthly Mobile Food Pantry distribution sites, with more planned in the future, targeting underserved neighborhoods and rural corners of the county.  Two or three times every week, in church parking lots, community centers and convenient neighborhood locations, you can find our Mobile Food Pantry set-up supplying nutritious and fresh food directly to those who need it.

These “pantries on wheels” play a fundamental role in feeding hungry people.   Every month, individuals and families living in New Cuyuma, Carpentaria, and Sisquoc have access to emergency food services which may not be available to them through traditional food distributions sources. 

Not only do Mobile Food Pantries offer accessible opportunities, but the Foodbank has made a commitment to providing the most nutritional food available.  Each Mobile Food Pantry delivers 3,000 to 4,000 pounds of food including; rice, beans, canned goods, cereal, peanut butter, tuna fish, juice, personal hygiene products and plenty of fresh produce to the most rural neighborhoods in our county. 

HOW TO GET FOOD - a schedule of these distributions