One of the reasons that there remains such stigma against using food pantries is the sense of powerlessness that comes from someone else determining what you eat. Food choice is deeply personal, and it is invasive and uncomfortable for someone else to make those choices for you.
People seeking emergency food assistance are at the mercy of those providing the resources and are often deeply aware of the power imbalance that comes with it. Food pantry staff work hard to get food to clients, and it can feel uncomfortable or invalidating for shoppers to be choosy, which can lead to pantries adopting a “they should be grateful for what they get” attitude.
But it is equally important to recognize that the power of choice in this setting may be one of the few opportunities many people have in their day-to-day life to say “no.” Rather than create a conflicting dynamic where food pantry staff get the last word, it’s possible to build an environment where choice and dignity are integral to the shopping experience.
Here are four techniques that food pantries can use to give clients autonomy and choice while using food assistance programs.
1. Minimize how often you tell clients, “no.”
We sort all our food out of sight in the warehouse, so clients don’t see it until it’s ready for distribution. This way we avoid clients seeing an option that they can’t have, either because it doesn’t meet our quality standards or because we’re stockpiling it for a later distribution. We work hard to never even mention foods that we’re not actively giving away so that no client feels let down when they don’t see that food. Any food that a client sees is available for them to take.
2. Set limits on as few items as possible, and be realistic.
It is probably necessary to limit some high demand foods like eggs, coffee, and frozen meat or else your supply will be quickly depleted. It can be tempting to put a limit on other popular items, but it’s also important to consider if people are going to adhere to the limit. If it is essential, your shoppers may just take more anyways. Don’t set up a situation when clients are tempted to break the rules or where your volunteers must focus on enforcement. Focus on celebrating when clients find the foods they need, rather than bemoaning when they take more than you think they need. (Read this to help get you there: Food Pantry Transformation With an Attitude of Abundance)
3. Encourage shoppers to take food as you restock the shelves.
We restock constantly throughout the day, so it’s quite likely we will bring in a cart of food that our clients are excited to see. It can be inconvenient or even annoying to have people dig into the boxes as we’re unpacking, but telling clients that they need to wait until we’re done is an unnecessary power play (and breeds competition between shoppers). When people take food as we bring it out, it also saves us from having to put it all away!
4. Don’t let volunteers take food if they’re not shopping as clients!
If you’re part of the Feeding America network, this is policy, but it still happens far too often. It’s easy for a volunteer who put in a hard day of work to feel like they earned that bag of coffee beans, or that it will be easier to just grab a dozen eggs instead of running to the grocery store. Every pantry needs a strict volunteer shopping policy where no food, no matter how small, may be taken unless they are shopping as a client. It is important that clients never get the impression that shopping policies are applied inconsistently because it is hard to feel respected and dignified when you think others are being favored. It is very possible that you will lose volunteers over the strict implementation of this rule, but are those the volunteers you really want to keep?
How clients feel while getting their food from a food pantry is just as important as the quality of food that they receive. Visiting a food pantry feels inherently humiliating and embarrassing, so it’s important to focus on the ways we can help clients leave feeling a little more empowered, respected and dignified. There is no quick fix, but implementing these small techniques will go a long ways towards establishing that everyone has a positive experience at the food pantry.
The opinions expressed here are solely my own and do not express the views or opinions of my employer.
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