Connecticut Foodshare provides Thanksgiving food to eligible partner food pantries that distribute groceries, as well as community kitchens and emergency shelters that prepare meals. To be eligible for Thanksgiving food, partner food pantries, community kitchens, and emergency shelters must be in good standing, actively receiving product from Connecticut Foodshare as of December 31, 2024, and consistently meeting monthly reporting requirements.
Connecticut Foodshare purchases some turkeys, but we rely heavily on corporate and community donations to meet our goal of providing a holiday meal for about 40,000 households through a combination of turkeys, chickens, and donated gift cards.
Connecticut Foodshare plans to provide turkeys, gift cards, and TEFAP chickens along with white potatoes, onions, apples, and squash. Additionally, we will offer frozen turkey breast (bone-in) and whole chickens at cost through our Grocery Purchasing Program (GPP) on Network Hub. Agency partners can expect to see this additional GPP product online starting in October.
Gift cards are donated by Big Y and are very limited in number. In most cases, allocation is based on proximity to Big Y stores to make it easier for neighbors to use the gift card to purchase their own turkey. Unfortunately, we do not have gift cards available for other retailers this year.
Connecticut Foodshare also distributes TEFAP whole chickens to eligible programs, as well as some gift cards. This helps us increase the number of households to which we can provide Thanksgiving food. For food pantries, we suggest that you provide a turkey, whole chicken, OR gift card to each household to cover the main dish, along with an allocation of produce to provide some side dishes. For meal programs, your allocation assumes that the product will be prepared by your organization for holiday meal service.
During this challenging time, with tighter resources, our goal is to distribute our limited Thanksgiving donations as equitably as possible to reach partners and neighbors across the state. Thanksgiving allocations are based on the amount of Thanksgiving product Connecticut Foodshare expects to have available, and
on the monthly reports for numbers served that your program provided for the most recent fiscal year (July 1, 2024, to June 30, 2025). Our goal is to divide our anticipated Thanksgiving donations proportionally across the network. For food pantries, we suggest that you provide a turkey, whole chicken, OR gift card to each household to cover the main dish, along with an allocation of produce to provide some side dishes. For meal programs, your allocation assumes that product will be prepared by your organization for holiday meal service.
The allocation email contains a link to a form to complete that allows programs to request additional products, if more becomes available. While we will make every effort to source as much Thanksgiving product as possible, we unfortunately will not be able to provide all the food our network needs this Thanksgiving. We encourage you to organize food and fund drives and reach out to your supporters to obtain additional food needed. Consider collaborating with other food providers in your area this holiday season. For more ideas, attend one of our upcoming Thanksgiving Peer Connects Thursday, September 18, at 2PM, and Wednesday, September 24, at 12 Noon, or view this guide.
Connecticut Foodshare distributes Thanksgiving product from Monday, November 17, through Tuesday, November 25. We may be able to provide some turkeys earlier than that, but no produce will be available early.
Thanksgiving orders may be delivered to your program on your regularly scheduled delivery day and time if your program currently receives a regular delivery. The allocation email includes a suggested delivery or pick up appointment. If your program needs your Thanksgiving food at a specific time, we recommend you pick up your product in Wallingford or Bridgeport if your program is located in lower Fairfield County.
The initial allocation email includes a link to complete a form where you will be able to request a different day and time. We will try our best to accommodate your request.
Regular online orders for pickup only can be placed Monday, November 17, through Tuesday, November 25, Thanksgiving week.
If your program takes part in our delivery program, and you want to place an online order the same week as your Thanksgiving delivery, you will need to pick up this order in Wallingford unless you are a program located in lower Fairfield County where orders will be distributed from the Bridgeport warehouse.
The allocation email includes a link to complete a form where you can let us know that you expect to place a regular online order for pick up the same week as your Thanksgiving order.
No, but if you choose to do so we have some optional forms that may be helpful. For a sample Thanksgiving request intake form that neighbors can complete, click here
for a form in English and Spanish. For a sample Thanksgiving request tracking list click here for a printable form
and here for an Excel spreadsheet
version. Please remember to include the neighbors served at Thanksgiving in the regular monthly statistics that you provide to Connecticut Foodshare. When managing Thanksgiving requests, we encourage you to prioritize the people who use your program throughout the year.
Contact Codi Wayton at cwayton@ctfoodshare.org or call them at (203) 741-9215 or contact your Network Relations Representative.
