That the food donation scene is a healthy one in general has received unexpected affirmation from the food that goes to waste. Leftovers such as half-eaten sandwiches, mouldy fruits and vegetables, and half-empty drink cans are found often in donation bins for food gifts during the festive season. Such unwanted gifts contaminate other food in the bin and waste the time of volunteers who have to sort out edible food from what is unfit for consumption. While donors should be complimented on their public-spiritedness, they can ensure their kindness does not go to waste by following a charity's guidelines on the type of donations it will accept before making a gift. Better still, donors can call a charity before donating to find out the specific items on its wish list.

There also is a question of timing. Understandably, donors tend to give more during festive occasions, when they buy more themselves and are in a more generous spirit than usual because of the cultural significance of those occasions. However, their largesse could pose logistical problems for the charitable organisations which distribute the gifts. At a practical level, vulnerable families find themselves presented with more items such as rice, noodles and snacks than they can consume immediately. Excess items tend to end up in the bin when they cannot be consumed before the expiry date. This is doubly a pity: The needy have to throw away what donors have given them with the best of intentions. To make matters worse, the festive "feast" of giving will be followed by a "famine" until the next festive season.