A D.C.-area food bank is stepping in to help furloughed federal workers who are having trouble making ends meet now that they’re missing paychecks.
Starting next week, people can simply show their government I.D. and stock up on free food at Capital Area Food Bank, the organization’s CEO Radha Muthiah said.
“A box of nutritious shelf stable items, like canned tuna, chicken, pasta, peanut butter, cereals — those kind of things, as well as a box of fresh produce,” Muthiah said.
There are a total of five pickup locations around the D.C. region that will open starting Tuesday, Oct. 21, and continue operations on a weekly basis throughout the duration of the government shutdown.
Here’s where to find the pickup locations:
Tuesday
Noon — 2 p.m.
No Limits Outreach Ministries
7721 Barlowe Rd, Hyattsville, Maryland 20785
Wednesday
10 a.m. — 11:30 a.m.
So What Else
6001 Executive Blvd., North Bethesda, Maryland
Friday
11 a.m. — 1 p.m.
United Community
7511 Fordson Rd, Alexandria, Virginia 22306
11 a.m. — 1:30 p.m.
Urban Outreach
5343 C St SE, D.C. 20019
Saturday
1 — 2:30 p.m.
LindaBen Foundation
10739 Tucker St, Beltsville, Maryland 20705
In the first week, Muthiah said the organization will be able to help about 150 families at each of the sites. She said the food bank may be able to ramp up efforts further if the need is greater.
“We get a sense of how long the lines are there, and we also will know about people calling in to ask us about those sites,” she said.
Capital Area Food Bank’s Hunger Report 2025 found that 36% of residents in the D.C. area struggled to put food on the table at some point in the last year. Among households affected by reductions to federal jobs and spending, the figure jumped even higher to 41%.
While all of the food intended for distribution will be bought by the food bank, Muthiah said that any help is greatly appreciated.
“Every dollar that’s contributed by someone that can make that contribution is equivalent to two meals that we can provide,” she said.
Editor’s note: Organizers changed the location of the distribution events held on Wednesdays. This story has been updated to reflect the revised location.
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