As an Oregon Food Bank Partner, you and your volunteers are the last checkpoint before food goes into the hands of the communities we serve. This goes for double checking food received directly from Oregon Food Bank and all other food sources to ensure that no mistakes were made. One important item to look out for is complete product labeling. If product lands without a label it should never be distributed to clients. Labels include important information such as allergens and nutrition facts that are crucial to ensuring the safety of our clients. More information as to why product labeling is important is linked here.

Product labeling must include the items below:

-        Statement of Identity (common name of the product)
-        Net Weight
-        List of Ingredients
-        Allergen Disclaimer
-        Nutrition Facts Label
-        Name and Address of the manufacturer or distributor
-        Country of Origin

So what do you do if you receive an unlabeled product? 

If the product came from Oregon Food Bank, please send us an email at networkcompliance@oregonfoodbank.org to let us know, place the product on HOLD, label it –DO NOT DISTRIBUTE, and await further instruction. Partners have been an important feedback loop for alerting OFB of product distributed without proper labeling, which is important feedback for OFB to receive and correct. The USDA Frozen Corn and Honey Maid Honey Graham Crackers were two examples of products that OFB distributed to agencies without labels.

If the product did not come from OFB, you do not need to let us know. In this case, you will likely need to safely dispose of the product if you have no way to create a clear/ complete label. If one of the products has a clear label that you can copy/re-create to label the rest, you may do so as long as you are certain the label is complete and accurate. If you are concerned and need support in how best to proceed, Oregon Food Bank Compliance team is here as a resource for your food safety questions. Please don’t ever hesitate to reach out to us at networkcompliance@oregonfoodbank.org.