Select a location. The cabinet should be in an easily accessible yet private area of the building. Involve
key building stakeholders in cabinet location selection.
Select a cabinet. Identify a used cabinet, if possible. Your cabinet could have doors or be open.
Does your building have a mouse problem? Would you like students to be able to more
easily see available food? Consider these kinds of questions and the long-term sustainability
of your cabinet.
With the sole exception of infant formula, sell and use by dates are not federally
mandated or regulated. There is no health or safety reason to exclude non-perishable
items once their date has passed. Food quality, based on appearance, can drive your
removal of food items.
Decide if your cabinet will operate through summer and winter breaks or not. Post
a sign to suspend contributions and use, or simply reduce stocking and weekly maintenance
during these time periods.
Start with a fully stocked cabinet and announce your launch.
Cabinets can only accept factory-sealed, shelf-stable items that do not require refrigeration.
• Individually wrapped items from a larger container are OK.
• NO prescription medications, illegal drugs, or items containing alcohol, tobacco,
or nicotine.
• Sealed toiletries are also acceptable.
• Implement a plan for weekly or more frequent cabinet maintenance.
• Remove inappropriate items and any past prime, shelf-stable produce
• Organize food and wipe down shelves. (Plan on a once per semester deep clean.) Baskets
and boxes can help organize contributions by type.
• Catalog food and identify contribution requests for your communication plan
• Track your weekly cabinet maintenance, including who completed the maintenance and
when.
