The Foodbank, Inc. serves as the primary source of food for the hunger relief network in Montgomery, Greene and Preble Counties.
The Dayton-area food bank distributes supplies to pantries, community kitchens, shelters and other charitable programs, all of which support both adults and children in the region.
“So many people in our community rely on The Foodbank, Inc. to put food on the table,” Montgomery County Auditor Karl Keith said. “I am proud to continue to direct these funds to The Foodbank, Inc. to support their fight against hunger here in Montgomery County.”
Food bank officials reported earlier this year that the need for food assistance was consistently high in the community, with the winter months typically being busier for organizations that help people through food assistance.
Lee Lauren Truesdale, chief development officer of The Foodbank, Inc., said that need has not dwindled as the food bank progresses through spring.
“It remains true that residents who utilize our services are continuing to do so for longer periods of time, compared to previous years,” she said on Monday.
Truesdale said the settlement money will help support the food bank during the spring and summer months. The Foodbank, Inc.’s network distributes more than 37,000 meals each day.
This is the second time this year The Foodbank, Inc. has benefitted from legal action against bargain chain retailers.
In January, Keith presented them with a check for $22,824 from the state’s $1 million settlement with Dollar General.
The lawsuits were filed against the retailers over instances of overcharging at the chains’ stores.
Attorney General Dave Yost announced that the settlement amounts would be distributed to hunger relief organizations in each of the state’s 88 counties, and that each county auditor would select the recipient of the money in their county.
The amount allocated for each hunger relief organization was based on the number of Family Dollar stores in that county. Family Dollar has 24 Montgomery County locations, half of which failed inspections during the county auditor’s price verification inspection of dollar stores in November 2022, according to the auditor’s office.
Keith said his inspectors have made a difference. Of those dozen stores that failed in 2022, all but one passed their follow-up inspection.
“We saw significant improvements in pricing accuracy at Family Dollar stores almost immediately after our first round of inspections,” Keith said.
Despite the improvements, Keith says consumers should still be vigilant. If a consumer believes they are being overcharged at a dollar store or other retailer, he advises them to ask the store staff to correct the price.
If they do not resolve the issue, they can call Keith’s Consumer Hotline at 937-225-6309 to request an inspection.
The auditor’s office continues to perform routine scanning inspections of all Montgomery County retailers.
“Our office will continue to ensure that the price you see in the aisle is the price you pay at the register,” Keith said.
County auditors inspect retailers to ensure that prices on the shelves match the prices at the register. In a retailer the size of a dollar store, inspectors will select and scan 50 items at random off the shelves. If more than 2% of items tested are found to be inaccurately priced, the retailer fails its inspection.
According to Keith, the purpose of the weights and measures program is to assure that equity prevails in the marketplace for both buyer and seller.
“Our Foodbank team and network of partner agency food pantries want to thank the Montgomery County Auditor’s Office for once again choosing The Foodbank, Inc. to receive this settlement donation,” Truesdale said. “Our gratitude also goes out to the inspectors who work tirelessly to ensure that consumers, who may also be Foodbank clients, are paying the right price for items they are purchasing on limited budgets.”
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