Essential Goods & Supplies
Introducing Goods
Through what began as the largest pet food banking network of its kind, Greater Good Charities provides food, pet food, household goods, veterinary pharmaceuticals, and other essential supplies to support people and animals.
Whether a warehouse of surplus pet food, an emergency pack built around what one family needs to get through a crisis, or a shipment reaching a rural animal shelter, we close the gap between generosity and need—because it's not real relief until it reaches those who need it.
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A family, a senior, a veteran struggling to afford the basics as costs rise and aid is cut. An animal shelter turning away pets because their budget is stretched too thin. A community reeling in the wake of a hurricane.
The need right now is greater than ever. Your support is essential to our mission to meet it as it grows and changes, filling gaps and providing direct, tangible relief to people and pets. Send food, supplies, and hope with a gift today.
Rising poverty, food insecurity, and domestic violence in recent years have taken a toll on families, and their pets are far from exempt, increasing need for food and essential supplies across the globe. We created our in-kind donation program to bridge that gap, streamlining logistics and sourcing to more easily connect surplus supplies to the under-resourced.
Crucial to the healthy intersection of people, animals, and the environment is sustainability. Our pet feeding program alone has diverted 225 million tons of food from going to waste. This equates to 47,000 metric tons of landfill CO2 emissions avoided, and a staggering 468,000 metric tons avoided from production emissions. While filling resource gaps, Greater Good Charities is centering waste reduction, production avoidance, and ultimately, holistic community support.
This sustainable hub-and-spoke distribution network solves the “last mile” problem in aid. We source and manage high-quality excess, rebranded, and short-dated essential supplies from generous corporate donors and move them to our vetted distribution hubs. They are then distributed to a network of thousands of organizations including human service agencies, food banks, domestic violence shelters, animal care and rescue groups, and more across the US, Europe, and the UK.
We specialize in the most difficult leg of the journey. By getting crucial supplies to local organizations on the frontlines and in under resourced communities—across both county lines and oceans—we ensure aid doesn’t just sit in a warehouse but makes an impact for good.
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More than 1 in 3 American families with children reported food insecurity in 2025, and with the costs of food, fuel, and essential goods steadily on the rise, that number is growing. Learn how we’re filling this gap in communities across the country through Community Relief Hubs.
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Greater Good Charities distributes food, essential supplies, clothing, housewares, toys, and more to pets and people in need worldwide.
Constituents of the program include pets (homeless and owned), families facing economic hardships, unhoused populations, military veterans, domestic violence survivors, victims of disasters, and displaced persons (DPs) or internally displaced persons (IDPs).
Greater Good Charities takes a more holistic approach than our previous model, which focused solely on distributing pet food and supplies to a select group of animal rescue partners.
The increase in poverty, food insecurity, and domestic violence over the past several years has affected families, including their pets, resulting in a greater need for food and essential supplies across the globe.
Greater Good Charities sources and manages excess, re-branded, and short-dated food and supplies from donors including manufacturers, distributors, and retailers. The program then makes these products available to qualified and approved distribution groups (Ambassadors) who ensure they reach the organizations that need them (Recipients).
The distribution network consists of thousands of charitable partners, including animal welfare organizations, food banks, Veterans Affairs locations, and other qualified agencies.
The program uses a sustainable hub-and-spoke model similar to a food bank. That is, the goods are donated, but freight, warehouse, and program costs are met by handling fees and donations.
Want to become a corporate partner with the program? Download our PowerPoint below to learn how.
Please locate the Ambassador nearest to you HERE and apply directly on their website.
Our generous sponsors supply the goods! From the sponsor's perspective, the decision to donate product must consider brand integrity, opportunities to enhance goodwill, risk, and cost. The program encompasses the whole process for receiving, tracking, and delivering donated product on a national scale.
Sponsors benefit from:
- An enhanced sustainable development program by putting slow-moving or short-dated inventory to good use in a way that has many social and environmental benefits
- One-call access to a nationwide reverse logistics network, reduced workload for your donation coordinators
- Recipient qualification through a detailed vetting process
- Recipient agreements that address FDA compliance, liability, and media rights issues
- Freight and regional distribution warehouse costs paid by Greater Good Charities and its Ambassadors—you provide FOB at your facility, and we cover the rest
- More rapid distribution of large volumes for faster recovery of warehouse space
- Shipment tracking and recall notice capabilities
- Coordination with your corporate communications, publicity, advertising, and social media staff to maximize goodwill
- Partner donation process
Click here for other brand benefits, as well as examples of brand partnerships, campaigns, and initiatives.
Contact by email at GOODS@greatergood.org
We typically need the following information:
- Product location and address, contact name, and phone number
- Product description(s), quantities, and ‘best by’ dates
- Confirmation that it is palletized and shrink-wrapped suitable for truck freight
- Transportation and storage specifics (dry, refrigerated, frozen)
- Reason for donation (code date issue, etc.)
- Schedule, including restricted days or hours at loading facility
- Fair Market Value of Donation
Make sure to check out our FAQ page for more information. If you still have questions, please email GOODS@greatergood.org.
Operating on the national food bank model, we depend on regional Ambassadors to distribute food and products in their community. We cannot complete our mission without the active support of our community-based Ambassadors.
Greater Good Charities serves its Ambassadors by:
- Sourcing and negotiating for donated food and products
- Shipping products to the Ambassador's warehouse
- Collecting distribution data and reporting to sponsors
- Providing standard forms and training materials for Ambassadors
- Providing support for disasters and other emergencies
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- Be a non-profit 501©3 organization (with or without a municipal contract) in good standing and/or a state/local governmental agency.
- Have been in existence for at least two fiscal years, with two years of nonprofit status in good standing with the IRS at an operating level over $100,000 per year. All 990s must be up to date and available for review.
- Demonstrate financial responsibility and capabilities for record keeping and timely reporting.
- Agree to the terms and conditions of the Ambassador Agreement, including compliance with our operating procedures and reporting requirements.
- Using the guidelines provided by Greater Good Charities, properly identify, screen, and manage Recipients before supplying resources to them.
- Screen online after distributions for resellers at a frequency of once per truckload.
- Must be able to operate the program without interruption through use of reliable volunteers and/or staff. Have convenient hours available to receive trucks and distribute to Recipients.
- Have a social media presence and/or website with quality photos and storytelling. Strong social media presence and following with ability to use a website or social media to drive traffic to their food assistance programming.
- Operate progressive community programming with a collaborative spirit and record of success. Examples may include spay/neuter, humane education, shelter intervention, and foster. Greater Good Charities is committed to promoting our Ambassadors.
An Ambassador organization will need to have:
- Warehouse space that is suitable for receiving, storing, and redistributing at least 40 pallets of pet food and/or supplies.
- Equipment and staff/volunteers to unload a truck within two hours—a forklift or loading dock is required. A pallet jack is suggested. Full truckloads do not come with a liftgate.
- A website and social media pages where the Greater Good Charities partnership is represented.
Are there costs associated with becoming an Ambassador Distributor?
Greater Good Charities does not charge an Ambassador membership dues, but Ambassadors are charged a handling fee for each truckload they accept. This is to cover the freight for shipments to the Ambassador’s warehouse. In turn, Ambassadors charge a handling fee to their Recipients and may retain a portion of these fees to meet their local expenses.
This program distribution typically does not generate extra income for the Ambassador. However, the portion of the handling fee retained by the Ambassador can often meet their expenses, such as the rental of a warehouse.
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Yes, a small handling fee based on the national foodbank model. The food is donated, but freight, warehousing, and program services are not. Recipients pay a small fee that helps the Ambassador and Greater Good Charities meet the expenses. Outside sponsors contribute the rest.
The fee is a maximum allowable charge to the Recipient. An Ambassador may reduce the fee charged to the Recipient, except that the Ambassador must still pay its portion.
There are cases where a fee is reduced or not charged, such as:
- Disaster response
- Law enforcement actions such as cruelty or hoarding cases
- Distributions where the sponsor pays the freight and handling
Please use the map to find the Ambassador nearest you. Click on their pin to be taken to their website to apply.
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