Volunteer
When you volunteer with the Vermont Foodbank, you’re sharing your time, passion, and commitment to fighting hunger with your neighbors—and ensuring everyone in Vermont has access to nourishing food. Come join the hundreds of people each year who support our neighbors by volunteering with the Vermont Foodbank.
How Can You Help?
Vermont Foodbank has a variety of volunteer opportunities throughout the state doing a variety of tasks to help fight hunger in Vermont. See below for the specific activities you can get involved in and then sign up using our online portal!
Help Foodbank staff and community partners distribute nourishing food directly to neighbors at one of our many statewide events. You might direct traffic, bag produce, and/or load food into visitors’ vehicles. Volunteers need to be at least 14 years of age or older to help at direct distributions. Volunteers must be able to lift at least 20 pounds and stand for two hours. Typically, these events are fast-paced. These outdoor opportunities are available year-round. Days and times vary based on location. Some of these events, depending on location, require background checks prior to participating.
Join the Vermont Foodbank at one of our three facilities to sort and pack food for community organizations and food shelves, build food boxes, and package coffee. Volunteers need to be at least 16 years of age or older to pack and sort food. Volunteers must be able to lift at least 20 pounds and stand for two hours. These inside opportunities are available year-round in Barre, Brattleboro, and Rutland. Days and times vary based on location.
Gleaning is an opportunity for all ages to harvest surplus produce from Vermont farms during the growing season, typically mid-June through late September. These outdoor, family-friendly opportunities are in Chittenden County and southwestern Vermont. Days and times vary based on location.
Visit our Gleaning page to learn more about this rewarding activity.
Engaging in anti-hunger work with others can be a deeply rewarding way to give back to your community. Volunteering as a group provides a shared experience to build upon. The Vermont Foodbank offers volunteer opportunities for groups within all types of volunteer activities. Each activity and location has differing parameters to meet the needs of the program or activity. If you have a group that is interested in one of our volunteer engagement opportunities, contact us at volunteer@vtfoodbank.org or at 1-802-477-4121.
The Vermont Foodbanks encourages volunteers of all ages to engage with anti-hunger activities in Vermont. If you are interested in exploring volunteer opportunities for people under the age of 18, whether individually or as a group, contact us at volunteer@vtfoodbank.org or at 1-802-477-4121.
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How Do You Sign Up?
If you are an individual 18 years of age or older interested in volunteering with the Vermont Foodbank, please complete our online volunteer application. If you'd prefer to sign up using a paper application, please email us at volunteer@vtfoodbank.org or call 1-802-477-4121.
If you are under the age of 18 and/or are interested in volunteering as a group, please contact us at volunteer@vtfoodbank.org or call 1-802-477-4121.
Volunteer applications are processed twice a week. For individual volunteer applications, you will not be able to see the calendar of events, nor register for opportunities, until your application has been processed and approved. Once this process has been completed you will receive an email from the Volunteer Services Team.
Frequently Asked Questions
It takes collaboration and partnership to make sure that everyone in Vermont has equitable access to enough nourishing food every day. The Vermont Foodbank works with over 300 community partners statewide—many of which rely on volunteer support. You can use our Find a Food Shelf tool to find a food shelf or meal site near you, to connect with and offer your assistance.
Volunteering is deeply rewarding and wanting to capture or share the joy is understandable. Privacy, safety, and permission are of the utmost importance.
To respect the privacy of neighbors accessing Foodbank services, photos and videos that capture program participants, their vehicles, or any identifying details need to be pre-approved by Vermont Foodbank staff and permission must be granted by the person(s) being photographed or recorded.
Please connect with the staff at your volunteer activity about picture-perfect moments.
If you are volunteering in one of our facilities, you may use one of the volunteer lockers, when available. Please do not bring any belongings into the sorting areas. Any valuable items should remain at home or in your vehicle.
If you are at an off-site location gleaning or supporting a direct distribution all personal belongings should remain in your locked vehicle.
Self-care is important, even when you are volunteering. Regardless of your volunteer activity we ask that you bring a pre-filled resealable plastic or metal water bottle with you. For safety reasons, please do not bring glass containers to your volunteer shift. If you are volunteering in one of our facilities, resealable plastic or metal water bottles are permitted in the sorting area, all other beverages and snacks need to remain in the kitchen/break room. When it comes to clothing volunteers need to be able to move freely, nothing overly tight nor excessively baggy. Please be mindful to not wear any clothing that has offensive messaging and/or graphics. Also, we recommend wearing layers. Most importantly, all volunteers are required to wear closed toe and heel footwear when volunteering with the Vermont Foodbank.
Shoes with a closed heel and toe are required when volunteering with the Vermont Foodbank. Also, we recommend wearing layers—warehouses can be chilly, and the weather can change over the course of your time with us.
The Vermont Foodbank encourages volunteers of all ages to engage with anti-hunger activities in Vermont. The age requirement for volunteers depends on the type of volunteer activity. To volunteer at a direct distribution you need to be at least 14 years of age. Volunteers who are sorting and packing food in one of our facilities need to be at least 16 years of age. Gleaning is an opportunity for volunteers of all ages to help fight hunger in the community. If you are interested in exploring volunteer opportunities for people under the age of 18, whether individually or as a group, contact us at volunteer@vtfoodbank.org or at 802-477-4121 for additional information.
Engaging with anti-hunger work with others can be a deeply rewarding way to give back to your community. Volunteering as a group provides a shared experience to build upon. The Vermont Foodbank offers volunteer opportunities for groups within all types of volunteer activities. Each activity and location has differing parameters to meet the needs of the program or activity. If you have a group that is interested in one of our volunteer engagement opportunities, contact us at volunteer@vtfoodbank.org or at 802-477-4121.
If you are an individual 18 years of age or older interested in volunteering with the Vermont Foodbank, please complete our online volunteer application.
Volunteer applications are processed twice a week. For individual volunteer applications, you will not be able to see the calendar of events, nor register for opportunities, until your application has been processed and approved. Once this process has been completed you will receive an email from the Volunteer Services Team.
You can request a paper copy by emailing Volunteer Services at volunteer@vtfoodbank.org or calling 802-477-4121.
If you are under the age of 18 and/or are interested in volunteering as a group, please contact Volunteer Services at volunteer@vtfoodbank.org or calling 802-477-4121.
