Food Assistance

Thank you for reaching out to Dakota County Mutual Aid. If you need food, there are several places in Dakota County where you can receive groceries at no cost.

If you need food, we recommend starting with these resources:

The Open Door: 651-686-0787
360 Communities: 952-985-5300
La Viña Community Food Distribution: Mondays from 3–6 PM
If you cannot access these resources because of transportation or another barrier, let Dakota County Mutual Aid know.

You do not need to wait until you run out of food!

1. The Open Door

The Open Door provides free groceries to Dakota County residents and has several different ways to get food.

Their Eagan food pantry offers groceries including fresh produce, meat, dairy, bread, and shelf-stable foods when available. Call 651-686-0787 to make an appointment.

If you need food right away and cannot get an appointment, you can go to The Open Door and ask for an emergency food bag. You do not need to wait for a regular food shelf appointment if you have an immediate need for food.

The Open Door also operates drive-through food distributions and mobile food distributions throughout Dakota County, including distributions at apartment communities, schools, senior housing, and other community locations.

If transportation to Eagan is difficult, ask about a mobile food distribution near you.

651-686-0787

2. 360 Communities Food Shelves

360 Communities operates a network of food shelves throughout Dakota County, including locations serving Burnsville, Apple Valley, Rosemount, Lakeville, and Farmington.

Call 952-985-5300 to ask about the closest food shelf and schedule a food appointment.

360 Communities can also help connect you with other resources if your household is experiencing a larger financial crisis.

952-985-5300

3. La Viña Community Food Distribution

La Viña in Burnsville offers free food every Monday from 3–6 PM.

You can pick up food directly from La Viña during the Monday distribution.

If you cannot get to La Viña, Monday delivery may also be available when volunteers are available. Delivery depends on volunteer capacity and cannot always be guaranteed.

Use the La Viña request form to request food or delivery:

https://request.lavinaburnsville.org/

If you need ongoing food support and have difficulty getting to a food shelf, La Viña's Monday delivery may be a good option to request.

I cannot get to a food shelf.

Can Dakota County Mutual Aid deliver food?

Dakota County Mutual Aid can help when there is a barrier preventing you from accessing food.

This might include:

No transportation
A disability or mobility issue
An urgent situation where you have no food
A parent who cannot safely leave home with young children
Another situation that makes it difficult or impossible to access available food resources

Please let us know what is preventing you from accessing food. We may be able to arrange an emergency delivery, help with transportation, or find another way to get food to you.

Dakota County Mutual Aid is not able to provide ongoing weekly food delivery. If you need food delivered regularly, we will work to connect you with a resource that is better set up to provide ongoing support, including La Viña's Monday delivery when volunteers are available.

Does your community need food?

Dakota County Mutual Aid partners with The Open Door to coordinate larger food distributions in communities throughout Dakota County.

If you live in or work with a neighborhood, apartment complex, mobile home community, or other community where many households are struggling to access enough food, please reach out to Dakota County Mutual Aid.

We can work with residents, community leaders, property managers, and The Open Door to explore bringing a food distribution directly into the community.

We would be happy to talk about arranging a distribution, potentially beginning with a once-a-month food distribution based on the needs of the community and available capacity.

SNAP Food Benefits

If your household needs ongoing help paying for groceries, you may also qualify for SNAP, sometimes called food stamps or EBT.

SNAP provides money each month that can be used to purchase groceries.

You can apply through Dakota County or ask for help completing an application.

Dakota County Employment & Economic Assistance: 651-554-5611

SNAP will not usually solve an immediate need for food today, so please use the food resources above while your application is being processed.

Do you have children in school?

If you have school-aged children and your household is struggling with food, contact your child's school social worker, counselor, or family support staff.

Many schools have access to food shelves, weekend food bags, emergency groceries, or other resources for families.

Still need Food?

If you have tried the resources above and still do not have access to enough food, please come back to Dakota County Mutual Aid.

Tell us:

What city you live in
How many people are in your household
Whether you have children and their ages
Whether you have transportation
Which food resources you have already tried
What is preventing you from accessing food

We can then help figure out the best next step.

If you have an immediate need for food and there is a barrier preventing you from getting to the available resources, please tell us. We do not want transportation or another access barrier to be the reason your household goes without food.