Kind Pantry by Kind Veg

Kind Pantry food bank provides plant-based foods to low-income individuals in our community through partnerships with local agencies. Our volunteer-driven food outreach is a labor of love and respect for people, animals, and the environment. When we say we care about people, we genuinely want the best for them. At Kind Veg Pantry, we strive to offer nutritious foods that benefit people’s health without contributing to the unnecessary and cruel abuse of land and sea animals in today’s food industry. We believe that healthful, compassionate food choices can be made without harming other living beings.

Kind Pantry is committed to environmental stewardship, recognizing that growing plant-based foods is a more sustainable way to feed people. An animal-based diet not only wastes and pollutes water [1], but also damages air quality [2] and significantly contributes to climate change [3]. A recent study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences highlighted that if all animal-based food production in the United States were replaced with nutritionally equivalent plant-based crops, the country could feed an additional 350 million people—more than the entire US population.

Sources: [1] CNN, “All About: Food and Fossil Fuels” [2] Grist, “EPA Offers Air-Pollution Immunity to Factory Farms” [3] United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization.

Kind Pantry Locations

Here is a list of our partner programs. We supply food to these agencies and do not offer direct outreach to individuals. Please note that food availability at these organizations may vary. Kind Veg collaborates and distributes through the following partners:

  Mental Health Association (MHA) Erie, PA

Since July 2014 we have been offering members belonging to the MHA Day Center fresh fruits, vegetables, soup, vegan crackers and nuts. Many receiving our foods are living in food deserts and several are homeless.

International Institute of Erie

This organization helps resettle refugee people in Erie.  Our food outreach started Nov 2017.  This food program offers lentils, split peas, various beans, potatoes, carrots, onions, garlic, rice and whole grain breads.

Veterans Administration (VA) Erie, PA

The VA has a food insecurity program for vets who are in need of food.  Sept of 2018, we started offering supplemental foods for the VA’s monthly food boxes.  We offer a variety of plant foods such as pasta, sauce, rice, various canned vegetables, beans, fruit, oatmeal, and grits and peanut butter.

Liberty House – Erie, PA

April of 2020 we started offering healthy plant foods to Liberty House, which is a homeless shelter for veterans and handicapped men. The men prepare their own meals. Here we take fresh and frozen produce, greens, and other salad ingredients, fruit, frozen vegan burgers and vegan sausages, pasta, rice, baked beans and bread.

The Refuge – Erie, PA

April of 2020 we started our food program at the Refuge, which is a homeless shelter for families. The families prepare their own meals at the shelter.  We take the same types of food to the Refuge as we do to Liberty House.

Community Shelter Services – Erie, PA

June 2023 we started offering this shelter fresh fruits and vegetables each month. The Homeless Shelter provides emergency shelter for up to 85 people.

Columbus Apartments

This is next door to CSS and we started here June 2023. The people living here, were formally homeless. We help by offering them fresh fruit.

Other Agencies We Have Served In The Past:

•  Front Steps – Cleveland, Ohio
•  Mt Zion Seventh Day Adventist in Erie, PA
•  United States Refugees & Immigrants Cleveland, Ohio
•  Rural Revitalization Corp Olean, NY