COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Mid-Ohio Foodbank has been feeding multitudes in central Ohio through partner agencies for more than three decades.

“The Mid-Ohio Foodbank was founded in 1980, when several community leaders, many of whom were already operating food pantries out of their churches, realized they could have more impact on the community by pooling their resources,” said Colin Baumgartner, communication and marketing director.

“Today, we get our food from a variety of sources and benefit from great community support in our mission to make sure that no one goes hungry.”

The Foodbank collects and distributes food to more than 550 partner agencies, including food pantries, soup kitchens, shelters, after-school programs and senior centers, across a 20-county region. “We provide enough food for about 76,000 meals every day and serve around 250,000 individuals over the course of a year,” said Baumgartner.

“All of us at the Foodbank wear many hats, which is part of the reason why we are able to distribute more than 40 million pounds of food every year with fewer than 100 employees. We have a great volunteer network with more than 13,000 volunteers and great community support.”

He said the budget is about $12 million annually, with 95 percent going to food and program services. One of the biggest challenges recently has been rising fuel prices, but simple things, such as organizing delivery schedules so drivers are not sitting in traffic during peak rush hour times, have made a difference.

“Thankfully we have done a good job projecting our budget,” he said. “We would rather spend our money on food than fuel.”

 Baumgartner said the food comes from a variety of sources, ranging from the food industry – either grocery stores or the companies that supply those stores – to federal and state government programs, including the USDA Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) and the Ohio Agricultural Clearance Program, which provides most of the 12 million pounds of fresh produce it handles annually.

Local donors ranging from local companies to gardeners donating extra produce and community food drives, such as one conducted as part of the Micki Zartman Scarlet and Gray Ag Day at The Ohio State University, also provide food for the Foodbank.

“Organizers of the event from actually approached us with the idea to get their Scarlet and Gray Ag Day students involved in a Kids Pack project,” he said. “That project is great for fourth- and fifth-grade students, since it teaches about giving back to students their same age, while also learning a bit about nutrition.

“It was a natural fit, and the Foodbank just really tried to lend support as needed to the event organizers, but they’ve done the real work.”

Baumgartner said the finished Kids Packs would be distributed to partner food pantries. “More than half of our partner agencies distribute food to families,” he said. “The Kids Packs are one of two programs we have for children.”

The second is called the Week-end Back program and is conducted through schools in the partner areas. Food is delivered to the schools where it is packed into backpacks and sent home with children to provide simple, nutritious meals over the weekends, when access to other meal options such as school lunch and breakfast programs may not be available.

Baumgartner said the Foodbank has seen requests for help from partner agencies increase by 38 to 40 percent since 2006, when the recession started.

“The good news is that our distributing communities have done a great job of responding to the requests,” he said. “There really is no such thing as ‘the face of hunger,’ as our clients come from inner city, rural and the suburbs (where they’ve seen the biggest increase in need in recent years).

“Thirty-five percent of the requests at our partner pantries are for children, so to be involved in a project that gives back to that vulnerable population is extremely important.”

Baumgartner said projects such as packing Kids Packs is not only helpful in teaching students about hunger in their community, but those students will be more likely to volunteer with a good pantry or soup kitchen when they are older.

But there also challenges to procuring food. The Foodbank is dealing with a change in the mix of supplies; fresh food, such as fruit, produce, dairy products and meat, is increasing, while shelf-stable products such as boxed and canned goods are declining largely due to technology, which allows stores to be able to track what they sell and reduce the number of products that are pulled because they have reached their expiration date.

“Feeding America estimates there is between three (billion) and six billion pounds of produce not being harvested or doesn’t sell at markets,” Baumgartner said. “Our goal is to get more fresh produce out to our partners, but that presents challenges. A box can sit on the shelf in a warehouse until we need it; you can’t do that with produce.  You need refrigeration to transport and store the products.”

Last year, the Foodbank added Produce Markets to its available programs. It delivers fresh products to partner agencies, which allows clients to pick up fresh products along with their staple items. While the availability of fresh products will expand the food choices available to clients, recipients also need to know how to prepare the fruits and vegetables, according to Baumgartner.

“It is one thing to get the food out to the clients,” he said. “It is another to educate them on what to do with these products and prepare them so they enjoy the food and eat more fruits and vegetables. One of the biggest issues right now is diabetes and obesity. It helps when more fresh produce is available.”