Asian Food Pantry
Since its launch in April 2020 as a monthly COVID-19 rapid response initiative, the Asian Food Pantry has grown to serve over 145 Portland households on a monthly basis.
Why an Asian-Specific Food Pantry?
The COVID-19 pandemic caused many less-resourced citizens to lose access to food pantries. This is particularly true for people of color—including low-income Asian elders living in Portland, Oregon. Initially developed as a pandemic response with community partners, the Asian Food Pantry at the Community for Positive Aging recognized the need for a local, culturally-specific food pantry to meet the needs of Asian elders.
Since its launch in April 2020 as a monthly COVID-19 rapid response initiative, the Asian Food Pantry has grown to serve over 240 Asian senior residents each month.
35 monthly volunteers
serving the pantry ranging in age from 5-75
210 Asian seniors
served each month, from 125 households
370 grocery bags
of culturally specific food provided monthly
$3000+
in kind donations
Welcome to the first food pantry in Oregon specifically serving Asian elders!
We provide healthy, cultural-specific ingredients, prepared foods, and pantry staples for low-income Asian elders, and we’re proud to serve members of Portland’s Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, Japanese, and Laotian communities, among others.
When, Where, and What
The Asian Food Pantry takes place every second Thursday between noon and 2:30pm, right at The Center. Please note this is a closed pantry and registration is required. While offerings may vary from month-to-month, you can always expect hearty staples and fresh produce, like:
Asian leafy vegetables
Bean sprouts
Condiments such as soy sauce, chili sauce, oyster sauce, Chinkiang vinegar, sesame oil
Tea
Grains such as millets, sorghum, barley, Jacob's tears, red beans, mung beans, soy beans
Rice noodles
Tofu
Our multilingual team speaks Mandarin, Vietnamese, Korean, and English.
Read about us in the news
Community for Positive Aging’s food pantry crosses cultures to help Asian seniors: Season of Sharing 2022
We Need Your Support
With a waitlist full of families and neighbors needing equitable food access, we can use all the help we can get. Community partners and donations are essential to our work! We rely on grants, sponsorships, and in-kind and individual donations to cover the $3,000 cost of each monthly pantry. Funds are used to purchase culturally specific healthy food for low-income Asian elders. Your donation will help us increase the number of households we can serve, and will help us expand services from Central to East Portland.
Our Partners
Here are some of our community partners who contribute to making the Asian Food Pantry possible each month:
