Food at First

Founded in 2003, Food at First is a charity based in Ames, United States working on poverty & hunger, community development, environment & climate.

Food at First is an independent nonprofit in Ames, Iowa, that provides free hot meals every day of the year and a free perishable food pantry called the Free Market, with no questions asked and no qualifications required. It also runs a gleaning program that recovers surplus fresh food from grocers, retailers and farms that would otherwise be wasted, and redistributes it to people facing hunger or food insecurity. Its annual Pass Along Party collects gently used and new gifts so families can shop for the holidays. The organisation began in March 2003 as a Lenten outreach program of First United Methodist Church and has operated from the lower level of First Christian Church at 611 Clark Avenue since 2015. Volunteers run its programmes, supported by church partners, local organisations and donors, and it operates entirely on donations. It is a 501 charity and donations are tax-deductible for US federal income tax purposes.