Just because the needy have limited choices, it doesn't mean they will accept anything dumped on them.

This was the message a local welfare organisation recently put out as constructive advice for those looking to donate more food items to the less privileged by assuming what they need.

Donations wasted because beneficiaries don't need them

Keeping Hope Alive, an organisation hoping to provide the underprivileged with a better quality of life, wrote a Facebook post on Aug. 13, 2019.

The post emphasised the need to assess what the underprivileged require before giving out donations.

Or else, it would lead to wastage because items given are never utilised.

The post then included photos of food items that have ended up collecting dust and past their expiration dates.

These items include basic and non-perishable goods such as cooking oil, soya sauce, instant noodles and canned food -- items that are left at the door for the needy.

Three full and unopened bottles of soya sauce can be seen left on the ground of the flat.

Instant noodles and canned food not healthy options

The organisation also wrote that some of the needy folks do not cook, resulting in the groceries left at their doorstep going to waste:

When the volunteers from Keeping Hope Alive 让希望活下去 conduct door to door knocking to speak to the old folks to find out their needs, some showed us their grocery items and said: "They left these at my door. I don't even cook."

Donors are also discouraged from donating goods such as instant noodles and canned food.

These items are not healthy choices, and not the best options for health-conscious elderly who might have health issues.

Vouchers are the best donations

The solution, the organisation shared, was to give vouchers.

An elderly woman the welfare organisation spoke to said that supermarket vouchers were the best form of donations as the needy could simply visit the store to pick out what they needed.

The organisation also shared that for those who required grocery items, volunteers could accompany the needy to the nearest shops to buy the relevant items.

The post also said:

"If we don't ask before giving, we may do more harm than good."

Those looking to volunteer with Keeping Hope Alive can message them at their Facebook here.

You can read their Facebook post here:

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Top photo from Keeping Hope Alive / FB