By Elle Wood

MILFORD — The Food Bank of Delaware is always looking for ways to involve the community in its mission.

To that end, its annual CANgineering initiative invites groups to build unique structures out of cans of food they get donated.

“CANgineering is our food structure building competition,” said Kim Turner, vice president of communications. “So, we extend the invite to businesses, organizations, faith-based communities. ... Really, any organization throughout the state is invited to participate.”

Interested groups should register by April 26. The teams will then pick up donation boxes from the Milford or Newark food bank branch.

It is recommended that participants plan their structures before their food drives start, so they can specify what is needed, added Ms. Turner.

By June 14, all building must be completed. Then, from June 17-20, judges from the food bank will rank the entries.

Members of the public will also be able to vote for their favorite structures on the food bank’s Facebook page, from June 24-27.

Once winners are announced July 2, the pieces will be disassembled, and the donated items will be delivered to the food bank.

Ms. Turner said the contest, which began in 2011, involves the public in raising awareness of what the food bank does for the food-insecure.

“It’s just a fun way for us to engage the community with helping us collect food for those in need,” she said.

She enjoys being a close part of the competition and seeing the creativity that goes into the builds.

“I get to be a judge, so it’s really fun to go out and see everybody’s structures,” said Ms. Turner. “It’s always amazing to see what they make because I could never do something like that.

“These companies build really extravagant, really creative structures, and it’s always fun to see how excited they are about their structures.”

She went on to say that CANgineering allows people to see firsthand how collecting donations can aid those struggling to find sustenance. In 2023, the contest garnered 33,000 pounds of food from 21 teams.

“Oftentimes, we think of food (in)security, and you might ... think that it does not exist in this particular community, but I always say that we are all one lost paycheck away from needing the services of the Food Bank of Delaware,” said Ms. Turner. “I think this is a tangible way that we can create awareness of the food bank.”

For information about CANgineering, visit fbd.org/cangineering.