Gifts in kind is a kind of charitable giving

Alms

Alms or almsgiving is a religious rite which, in general, involves giving materially to another as an act of religious virtue.It exists in a number of religions. In Philippine Regions, alms are given as charity to benefit the poor. In Buddhism, alms are given by lay people to monks and nuns to...

 in which, instead of giving money to buy needed goods and services, the goods and services themselves are given. The motivations for GIK vary, but include:

• Concern for the environment
  Natural environment
  The natural environment encompasses all living and non-living things occurring naturally on Earth or some region thereof. It is an environment that encompasses the interaction of all living species....
  
  -- Many donated goods are either second hand
  Used goods
  A second-hand or used good is one that is being purchased by or otherwise transferred to a second or later end user. A used good can also simply mean it is no longer in the same condition as it was when it was first transferred to the current end user...
  
   or otherwise surplus. If not donated to people who need them, they might otherwise end up in a landfill
  Landfill
  A landfill site , is a site for the disposal of waste materials by burial and is the oldest form of waste treatment...
  
  .
• Relief
  Humanitarian aid
  Humanitarian aid is material or logistical assistance provided for humanitarian purposes, typically in response to humanitarian crises including natural disaster and man-made disaster. The primary objective of humanitarian aid is to save lives, alleviate suffering, and maintain human dignity...
  
  -- During disasters and other humanitarian crises, companies and individuals often want to help. Giving goods that are already at hand is more cost effective for the donor than giving money to buy these same goods.
• Development
  International development
  International development or global development is a concept that lacks a universally accepted definition, but it is most used in a holistic and multi-disciplinary context of human development — the development of greater quality of life for humans...
  
  -- Helping with longer term development in impoverished or otherwise distressed areas is a high priority for governments and large NGOs. GIK can be a significant component of a larger humanitarian development strategy.

GIK has several advantages over monetary giving:

• Donated goods are much less susceptible to becoming graft
  Political corruption
  Political corruption is the use of legislated powers by government officials for illegitimate private gain. Misuse of government power for other purposes, such as repression of political opponents and general police brutality, is not considered political corruption. Neither are illegal acts by...
  
  .

• The goods themselves would otherwise often end up as landfill
  Landfill
  A landfill site , is a site for the disposal of waste materials by burial and is the oldest form of waste treatment...
  
  . GIK provides a means, particularly for corporations, of doing social good with things that would otherwise be a liability.

In the last few years, a great deal of attention has been given in the humanitarian community to GIK. Organisations like Gifts In Kind International and GlobalHand have been established to help people who have things to donate find qualified recipients who need them.