Norwich - St. Vincent de Paul Place soup kitchen has joined the AmpleHarvest.org campaign - a nationwide effort to help backyard gardeners find neighborhood food pantries to share their harvest.

Local food pantries usually receive supplies from regional food banks, government programs and neighborhood donations and generally do not include fresh produce because of distribution and storage issues.

At the same time, gardeners frequently find that their vegetable and fruit gardens provide more produce than they can use or share with friends.

The AmpleHarvest.org web site enables food pantries to register their name, phone, address, an optional photograph of the pantry to make it easier to find, and days and times they can accept the gardeners produce.

Gardeners and other donors also have the option of using the AmpleHarvest iPhone app available as a free download from the Apple iTunes store.

More than 1,700 food pantries participate nationwide.

St. Vincent de Paul Place welcomes fresh produce donations for its patrons, Executive Director Jillian Corbin said. Information will be posted from time to time by the pantry on the site, listing store bought items that are in short supply at the pantry.

For information, contact St. Vincent de Paul Place at (860) 889-7374.