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The Retail Pick-Up Program is important for the movement to end hunger, because there’s enough food for everyone when we work together to reduce food waste. But the success of the program requires coordination and helping hands to make it work. At Christian Action Ministries (CAM) – an Ozarks Food Harvest partner pantry – those helping hands are generous volunteers.

The Food Bank’s Retail Pick-Up Program rescues food by connecting local retailers with our nearby partner charities, like CAM. CAM then picks up food from the store that does not meet standards for retail sales but is still safe to eat. Instead of sending that perfectly edible food to the landfill, CAM distributes it to their neighbors facing hunger in Branson and Forsyth.

“We get a lot [from retail pickups] every week,” said Logan Godwin, CAM pantry manager, “So it definitely makes a drastic change in what we would and would not be able to hand out to clients. The stores don’t like wasting food either, so this is mutually beneficial.”

That food rescue wouldn’t happen without the help of CAM’s generous volunteers who drive to stores like Walmart, Dollar General and Country Mart several days a week to collect excess food, allowing CAM to rescue more than what their team of staff could pick up alone. Through Retail Pick-Ups each week, CAM collects several pallets of bakery items, produce, frozen meats and more that has renewed purpose in helping families keep meals on the table.

“Volunteers are important because we have a very small team of staff and cannot do it all without volunteers. … I can never speak highly enough of volunteers and what they are willing to do,” Logan shared.

Many of our partner charities rely heavily or entirely on volunteers to serve the community. Thank you to the kind people at CAM who give their time to reduce food waste and help their neighbors access meals. Together, we can end hunger in the Ozarks.