Pantries let people pick and choose

The grocery store method is dignified and reduces waste, proponents say.
ELYRIA (AP) -- Ohio food banks say the days of recipients getting a bag full of random items are fading.
Many food pantries are now setting up grocery store type shelves and allowing people to choose what they want.
At the Community Impact Organization Inc. in this city about 25 miles southwest of Cleveland, soft rock music plays in the background and free samples occasionally turn up with recipes.
The goal is to allow people to receive food donations in a dignified way and reduce waste, said Todd Walts, executive director of CIO.
"Shoppers can select what they know the family will eat," he said.
The Neighborhood Center in Elyria also will be switching to the grocery store approach to food banks, said Connie Osborn, director of the center. The change will likely take place in January.
"It looks like a trend of the future," said Diane Zemanek, spokeswoman for Second Harvest Food Bank of North Central Ohio.
At the CIO food banks, recipients must fill out a form and provide a photo ID and proof of residence before "shopping." The form determines how much food the recipient can receive based on income and size of family.
Food on shelves
On the shelves this past week were cans of pink salmon, macaroni and cheese, potato chips, pasta and sauce and snacks such as pudding and fruit cups. Frozen food was stored in freezers donated by a local church.
Ohio food banks say regardless of the setup, demand is high this year and without more donations, there might not be food available.
Hamilton County's largest emergency provider, FreeStore/FoodBank, says the number of people seeking help at its Over-the-Rhine pantry in Cincinnati is up nearly 5,000 a year compared with three years ago.
"We're running out of food," said Jennifer Ebelhar, development director, adding she didn't know if the pantry had enough to get through Christmas.
Demand is high
The food banks say a sluggish economy has contributed to more demand and fewer donations. High gas prices that are pinching business' budgets also have contributed to fewer corporate donations, pantry workers say.
"I've never seen that warehouse as empty as it is. It's just getting tougher and tougher to find food," said Gary Gruver, director of Serve City, a Hamilton food pantry.