VERONA, Va. (CBS19 NEWS) -- The Blue Ridge Area Food Bank is once again participating in a national food drive that is the largest one-day food collection effort in the country.

The National Association of Letter Carriers will be holding its annual Stamp Out Hunger Drive on May 13.

SOH launched nationally in 1993 and surpassed the one billion pounds of food collected mark in 2010.

On May 13, residents can leave non-perishable food items by their mailbox and their letter carrier will collect them.

The most needed items include canned fruits, meats and vegetables, paper products, personal care items, and diapers. Donations should not come in glass jars or need to be refrigerated.

Donated food will then go to help area organizations, such as BRAFB.

BRAFB says last year’s drive brought in nearly 114,200 pounds of food across its service area, which provided more than 95,000 meals to people experiencing food insecurity.

Since the food bank started participating in this drive, it has collected more than 2.36 million pounds of food.

Additionally, BRAFB is also looking for volunteers to help with collecting and sorting donated food at post offices in Charlottesville, Harrisonburg, Lynchburg, Staunton and Waynesboro.

For a full list of items that can be donated or volunteer opportunities, click here.

BRAFB says its partner locations saw a 14 percent increase in the number of people looking for assistance during the second half of 2022.