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SPRINGFIELD, Mo.— Grocery shoppers have until Dec. 31 to Check Out Hunger for Ozarks Food Harvest at nearly 80 participating stores, including Akin’s, Bistro Market, Country Mart, Dillons, Harter House, Hy-Vee, Murfin’s Market, Price Cutter, Ramey, Smitty’s, Summer Fresh, Town & Country and Woods Supermarket.

Check Out Hunger gives community members the opportunity to add a $1, $3 or $5 tax-free donation to their bill when checking out at area grocers.

The 15^th annual Check Out Hunger campaign began Nov. 15 in more than 50 communities to help feed the 170,000 people Ozarks Food Harvest serves annually through its member pantries and agencies.

Last year, the fundraiser was record-breaking, collecting $35,000 — the equivalent of 175,000 meals. This year’s goal is to raise $40,000. Since 1998, the holiday campaign has collected $235,000 in donations — the equivalent of nearly 1.2 million meals.

Shoppers will find displays in the check-out lanes at their local grocery stores. When a shopper chooses to add a donation of choice to his or her grocery bill, the cashier simply scans the donation barcode and the donor signs a donor card for display. The donation is added to the bill and appears on the receipt.

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About Ozarks Food Harvest—The Food Bank
Ozarks Food Harvest is the Feeding America food bank for southwest Missouri, serving more than 200 organizations across 28 Ozarks counties. The Food Bank distributes 10 million meals annually to 170,000 unduplicated individuals. OFH celebrates its 30th anniversary in 2013. Learn more at ozarksfoodharvest.org, facebook.com/ozarksfoodharvest or twitter.com/ozksfoodharvest.