Got Emergency Food AND Power? Food Banks Plead For Your Stockpiles
By Ian Bush
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Ahead of Hurricane Sandy's arrival, the recommendation was to stock up on days' worth of bottled water and non-perishable foods.
If you are now one of the lucky ones whose power has NOT gone out, and you don't need all that stuff, local food banks hope you'll consider them.
Relief groups such as the Community Food Bank of New Jersey are always looking for donations, but especially now.
"Given this weather episode, you're going to have a lot of people that are going to be distracted with their own issues, because you had many people lose property," says Margie Barham, who heads the southern branch in Egg Harbor Township, which serves hundreds of pantries and shelters from inland to the hard-hit coast.
Her shopping list for those with overstocked shelves?
"I always say it's typically the food you would want to eat if you were in need," she tells KYW Newsradio.
Foods such as peanut butter, stews or other meals-in-a-can, tuna fish, cereals, and shelf-stable milk are especially needed, Barham says.
