Nourishing Communities
Emerald City Pantry offers complete nutrition, including fresh produce, dairy products, eggs, meat, fish, and prepared deli items, in Southeast Seattle, one of the country's most culturally diverse areas.
At the same time, we are reducing the amount of amazing food entering the waste stream. Join us in our mission to create a sustainable community where everyone has access to healthy food.
What we do
Kids are welcome!
Always free to the community.
Kids and teens are welcome to "shop" at any of the Emerald City pop-ups. Friendly volunteers are ready to help them select groceries for themselves and their families. What better way to get a jump start on learning about healthy food choices?
Emerald City Pantry (ECP) distributes over 300,000 pounds of high-quality groceries annually, primarily from PCC Markets, Whole Foods, and Metropolitan Market.
Pop-up markets
No registration or sign-in.
Every Saturday, Emerald City Pantry sponsors a pop-up market at Rainier Playfield.
We partner with local businesses to rescue food that has reached its sell-by date but is still perfectly good to eat and distribute it to the community.
PCC alone provided a 2024 grocery value of $1.3+ million, excluding produce, which is a large part of their donation.
Emerald City Pantry helps prevent food waste while ensuring the Southeast Seattle community has access to nutritious meals.
Community Fridge
Convenient after-work hours
The "Fridge" is stocked with high-quality produce, meat, seafood, deli items, and desserts donated by PCC Markets, Whole Foods Grocery, Met Market, and others.
Located at 5040 30th Ave S., Seattle, WA, the fridge is a great place to stop in the evening to pick up a bag of groceries.
Hours are posted on several Facebook pages, including Facebook/ Buy Nothing Columbia City/Lakewood, Seattle, WA.
Home-cooked meals for Tent City Residents
Emerald City Pantry delivers home-cooked meals prepared with donated ingredients to Tent City locations and Tiny Home Village residents.
Outreach to the Community
Emerald City Pantry donates to non-profit and community organizations, including the Southeast Seattle Senior Center.
ECP delivers turkeys during the Christmas holidays, whole hams during Easter, and other groceries for the Center's lunch program
Join us!
Emerald City Pantry is an all-volunteer organization working under the fiscal sponsorship of Sustainable Seattle.
Together, we can make a difference one meal, one bag of groceries at a time.
Gallery
Our Mission: Food security for our community while reducing food waste
Emerald City Pantry provides nutritious, delicious food for our neighbors in SE Seattle, where one in five residents lives in poverty.
80% of local children in our Seattle community qualify for the free or reduced-price lunch programs. Nutrition is vitally important for these children who have the lowest academic scores of any neighborhood in the city.
Emerald City Pantry distributes high-quality food through four programs:
A bi-weekly pop-up every Wednesday and Saturday at the Rainier Playfield in Seattle
A community fridge in Columbia City open on Mondays
A home-chef program that prepares meals from donated ingredients and delivers them to residents living in temporary housing locations
An outreach program delivering food to local organizations, including the SE Seattle Senior Center.
Through ECP, community members enjoy nutritious, high-quality, culturally relevant food they might not otherwise afford.
Our all-volunteer team ensures that this food reaches families and individuals who can benefit from it, creating a sustainable cycle of giving that strengthens our community.