Volunteering with UAE Food Bank
About UAE Food Bank
UAE Food Bank is one of the country’s main efforts to tackle food waste and hunger at the same time. It was launched on 4 January 2017 under the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives (MBRGI) and is managed by Dubai Municipality.
The idea is straightforward. The Food Bank collects surplus food from hotels, restaurants, food factories, farms and suppliers, then distributes it safely, through approved charities, to people in need in the UAE and abroad. Its patron and Supreme Chairperson is Her Highness Sheikha Hind bint Maktoum bin Juma Al Maktoum.
The scale is impressive. According to Dubai Municipality, more than 100 million meals have been distributed since the Food Bank was set up. In 2025 alone, more than 23 million people benefited from redistributed surplus food, and more than 6,275 tonnes of surplus food was kept out of landfill.
What volunteers do
Volunteers are a big part of how the Food Bank works. Individuals and organisations can join its collection and distribution efforts, helping move food from where it is not needed to where it is. In 2025, the Food Bank’s work plan included 20 major initiatives with extensive volunteer engagement, and its annual ceremony at Madinat Jumeirah honoured 67 entities, including individual and institutional volunteers.
Ramadan is traditionally the busiest time. In past years, the Food Bank has supported meal distributions for workers, such as suhour meals handed out to around 500 workers a day in Al Quoz, as Gulf News reported, with volunteers of many nationalities taking part.
Who can volunteer
The Food Bank welcomes both individuals and organisations. It does not publish a single set of requirements, so details such as age limits depend on the specific activity. In general, opportunities with government-linked bodies in the UAE are often posted on official volunteering platforms, where each listing sets out its own criteria.
On volunteers.ae, for example, volunteers sign up with UAE Pass and need to be a UAE citizen or resident, aged 18 or over (or under 18 with parental consent).
How to get involved
- Read about the Food Bank’s work on the Dubai Municipality UAE Food Bank page.
- Email uaefoodbank@dm.gov.ae or call 8009999 to ask about current volunteering needs.
- Create a profile on volunteers.ae or the CDA Dubai Volunteering portal and watch for food distribution opportunities.
- If you are organising a group, say so in your email. The Food Bank works with institutional volunteers as well as individuals.
Other ways to help
The Food Bank accepts surplus food donations and lets you sponsor food boxes. If you run a restaurant, hotel kitchen, farm or food business, this is one of the most useful things you can do: surplus that would otherwise be thrown away can feed people instead.
Money helps too. In 2025 the Food Bank received AED 1.1 million in financial donations, signed 28 cooperation agreements and reached more than two million people through its educational and awareness programmes. That awareness work is a quiet but important part of the picture: the less food we waste at home and at work, the less needs rescuing in the first place.
The Food Bank also runs community fridges, and it accepts financial donations. If you or someone you know needs food support, you can apply online or use the same email and phone number.
Good to know before you go
- Food safety: the Food Bank’s whole model depends on distributing food safely. Follow every hygiene instruction you are given.
- Dignity first: treat everyone receiving food with respect, and never photograph recipients without their consent.
- Dress: as a general guide, wear modest, comfortable clothes and closed shoes, especially in warehouses or at outdoor distributions.
- Ramadan: expect more opportunities, and more demand for volunteers, during the holy month.
Contact and links
- Official page: Dubai Municipality UAE Food Bank
- Government information: u.ae UAE Food Bank
- Email: uaefoodbank@dm.gov.ae
- Phone: 8009999
If you want to volunteer somewhere with real reach, UAE Food Bank is a solid choice, and a reminder of how much good food goes to waste without it.