Twenty years ago, in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Value-Added Food Sales began assembling shelf-stable food boxes to help hunger relief organizations respond to one of the worst natural disasters in American history. What started as a disaster response effort became a permanent part of our business — because the need never went away.

Today, we’re announcing the next chapter of that commitment: the conversion of our Wayland, Michigan, facility into a dedicated food box assembly center.

From Surge to Sustained Demand

Last fall, when federal funding disruptions affected SNAP benefits for millions of Americans, food banks across the country faced a surge in demand that eclipsed even the staggering demand during COVID. Many of them turned to VAFS.

During those weeks, current and previous box customers turned to us immediately — many of them placing orders before the disruption fully hit. Our team maintained the same service levels we deliver in normal operations, even as order volumes reached record levels. That performance during a crisis became the proof point that turned situational buyers into ongoing partners.

Since then, many of those partners have continued ordering — supplementing their own box assembly operations with our solutions to free up staff and volunteer capacity for direct service. Their referrals have also brought new customers to VAFS.

This growth isn’t only surge-driven. Food as Medicine initiatives are gaining momentum across the hunger relief landscape as organizations secure new funding sources and expand medically-directed nutrition programs. Pre-assembled boxes designed for these programs solve a real operational challenge — delivering consistent, dietitian-aligned menus at scale without requiring food banks to build custom assembly operations from scratch. It’s one of the fastest-growing areas of demand we’re seeing, and a major factor in the decision to dedicate the Wayland facility to assembly.

As foodbanks expand their offerings, win more grants, and proactively plan, demand for pre-assembled food boxes has stepped up and stayed.

A Facility Built for What Comes Next

The Wayland conversion gives us dedicated infrastructure to meet that demand. Rather than sharing space and labor across multiple operations, the facility now focuses exclusively on food box assembly. This dedicated focus increases our volume capacity, improves consistency, and shortens lead times even in periods of high demand.

“The growth in our box program over the past year confirmed what we’ve believed for a long time — that pre-assembled food boxes have evolved from simply a disaster response tool. They’re becoming a core solution for a variety of hunger relief needs in their day-to-day operations,” said Nick Blawat, CEO of Value-Added Food Sales. “Dedicating our Wayland facility to box assembly is a direct investment in meeting that need at the scale our partners require without negatively impacting our mixing center commitments.”

In addition to the Wayland box assembly facility, VAFS continues to operate six mixing centers nationwide — in Indiana, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Georgia, Arkansas, and our newest location in Phoenix, Arizona — ensuring broad geographic coverage and short transit times for shelf-stable goods for hunger relief organizations nationwide. Customers who previously utilized Wayland as a mixing center will find the transition seamless, with nearby Indiana and the rest of our national network continuing to serve their wholesale needs.

What This Means for Our Partners and Customers

With expanded assembly capacity, we’ve also begun stocking pallets of pre-assembled boxes directly at all of our mixing centers. That means customers can now add assembled food boxes to their mixing center orders at the pallet level — with no additional lead time. It’s as simple as adding them to your next truck.

Our standard box lineup has grown well beyond its disaster relief origins. Every option has been developed alongside hunger relief organizations to meet their specific nutritional and operational requirements:

Family Staples Box — Two standard menus that provide variety and offer a balanced mix of proteins, grains, vegetables, and shelf-stable milk designed for year-round pantry distribution.

Disaster Relief Box — Ready-to-eat meals designed for shelters, evacuation centers, and emergency response when cooking facilities are unavailable.

Holiday Meal Box — Complete shelf-stable holiday meal sides for seasonal distribution programs and grant-funded holiday initiatives.

Kid Backpack Box — Portable, kid-friendly meals for Friday send-home programs, extended breaks, and summer feeding.

Food as Medicine Box — Nutritionally targeted options supporting health-focused distribution programs and nutrition for neighbors with medically directed diet needs.

Spice Box — Essential seasonings that help families transform shelf-stable staples into flavorful, culturally diverse meals.

Organizations with specific program requirements can also work with us to build custom boxes, available with a slightly longer lead time.

Built for Hunger Relief

Every box we assemble reflects our 30-year history of working exclusively with nonprofit hunger relief organizations. That means menus built to meet nutritional guidelines. Manageable weight at the box level so volunteers and neighbors can handle them safely. Predictable, standardized shelf life that simplifies inventory management. Packaging engineered for clean palletization and efficient warehousing. Consistent quality across every order. Minimal lead times.

These aren’t commercial food boxes adapted for nonprofits. They’re solutions designed from the ground up for the way hunger relief organizations actually operate.

“Value Added Food Sales is our pre-packed box vendor of choice. Their ability to provide customized solutions and their expertise in sourcing high-demand, healthy, shelf-stable items allow us to consistently supply our partners with healthy, program-specific menus designed by our resident dietitian. VAFS is reliable, and their customer service is second to none. We consider them to be a strategic partner in our mission to end hunger.”

• Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina 

To learn more about our box program or to discuss how pre-assembled boxes can support your operations, contact our box program team:

Chloe Iwaniw (248) 622-7042 | chloei@valueaddedfoodsales.com

Visit valueaddedfoodsales.com for full product details, nutrition specs, and ordering information.