By Perry Schaible
Enquirer contributor

FAIRFIELD -- Officials with Butler County's Feed Alliance named the organization's first director, a step forward in an effort to establish an innovative food pantry.

Richard Hutchison was hired last month as the director of Feed Alliance, a coalition of Butler County human service agencies and churches.

"It's an organization that wants to ensure that there is a fair distribution of quality food delivered to those in need in a timely fashion and with dignity," Hutchison said.

Now in his third week, Hutchison is working to implement the county's first "Choice Pantry." The goal is to give families in need choices to accommodate desired preferences, diet and cultural needs.

It's also "an effort to reduce waste," Hutchison said.

The county's first "Choice Pantry" will open in the spring in the former Reed-Klopp Furniture Store in downtown Middletown. Plans include additional specialized food pantries in the county by the end of 2004.

Social service representatives will be available at the site to speak with clients. Hutchison will also offer education, meal planning, recipes and cooking demonstrations.

Feed Alliance received grants from the Butler County Department of Job and Family Services and from the USDA's Office of Community Service's Food and Nutrition Program. The agency, in its third year, is run out of the Shared Harvest Food Bank in Fairfield.

---

For more information, call Hutchison at 874-0114.