Livingston, California-based Foster Farms is partnering with food banks to help provide more than 2 million meals to families impacted by the economic consequences of Covid-19. In the coming days, the family-owned company will actively contribute to hunger relief efforts, delivering much needed protein to food banks and community organizations on the West Coast as well as Louisiana and Alabama.
“Covid-19 has touched the very fabric of American life,” said Foster Farms’ VP of Communications Ira Brill. “As a company, we have always felt a responsibility to support to our communities in times of adversity. Food banks are on the front lines of ensuring that hunger is not an added result of the Covid-19 pandemic.”
According to Jaclyn Pack, food acquisitions manager for the Central California Food Bank in Fresno, Covid-19 has resulted in a 50 percent increase in local need.
“The effect of Covid-19 on our communities has been devastating. We are grateful to Foster Farms for its generous donation and continued support in bringing protein to Central Valley families that find themselves in dire circumstances,” Pack said.
Blake Young, CEO of Sacramento Food Bank & Family Services, noted that families who have never sought help combined with pre-existing need is emptying food bank shelves.
“Food banks are struggling to source food donations, dollars and volunteers. Foster Farms is helping us close the gap,” Young said.
Foster Farms maintains production facilities in California, Oregon, Washington, Louisiana and Alabama, and will be leveraging its resources to expedite relief efforts. The donations are a continuation of a decade-long commitment to fighting hunger and responding to community need in time of crisis.
Foster Farms encourages others to join in its efforts by donating to their local food bank. Among the food banks and hunger relief organizations receiving donations are: Second Harvest Food Bank in Manteca, California; SF-Marin Food Bank in San Francisco; Northwest Harvest in Seattle; Los Angeles Regional Food Bank in Los Angeles; Merced County Food Bank in Merced, California; Sacramento Food Bank & Family Services in Sacramento, California; Oregon Food Bank in Portland, Oregon; Jacobs & Cushman San Diego Food Bank in San Diego; and Central California Food Bank in Fresno. Arrangements for delivery to Louisiana and Alabama food banks are pending.
Family owned and operated, Foster Farms specializes in fresh, all-natural chicken and turkey products free of preservatives, additives or injected sodium enhancers. Based in California’s Central Valley, with ranches in the Pacific Northwest, the company’s fresh chicken and turkey are produced in or near each region served. Foster Farms also produces pre-marinated, ready-to-cook and fully cooked products.
