PORTLAND, Ore., Aug. 04, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Smithfield’s Helping Hungry Homes tour made the 20 th stop on its 2016 nationwide hunger-relief tour this morning to donate more than 25,000 pounds of protein to Oregon Food Bank. Smithfield partnered with Safeway to make the donation, which will provide more than 100,000 servings to communities throughout Oregon, where one in five people suffer from food insecurity.
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/Attachm...6ec3431028
Representatives from Smithfield and Safeway presented the donations to Oregon Food Bank during an event on Thursday, August 4 at the food bank, located at 7900 NE 33 rd Dr., Portland, OR. Speakers discussed the importance of donations like this in Oregon communities, where 32 percent of food bank assistance recipients are children who depend on school lunch programs throughout the year.
Helping Hungry Homes, now in its eighth year, is Smithfield’s coast-to-coast campaign to help Americans become more food secure. This year, the program will help fight hunger through more than 30 large-scale protein donations to food banks across the United States totaling more than 3.5 million servings. To date, Helping Hungry Homes has provided more than 40 million servings of protein to food banks across America.
“Meats are high in protein and important for a nutritious diet, especially for growing children,” said Katie Pearmine, Oregon Food Bank’s strategic sourcing manager. “We are grateful for this donation from Smithfield since meat is one of the most costly and in-demand items.”
“We understand the need to help eradicate hunger in Oregon, and are proud to partner with Smithfield and further enable Oregon Food Bank’s efforts to solve it,” Greg McNiff, Safeway Portland division president.
“Smithfield is proud to partner with Safeway to provide Oregon Food Bank with this donation through our Helping Hungry Homes program,” said Dennis Pittman, Smithfield senior director of corporate communications and public affairs. “As a food company, it’s imperative that we help our neighbors in need. Through this donation, we are proud to provide wholesome protein to families and individuals throughout the state of Oregon.”
About Smithfield A leading provider of high-quality pork products, Smithfield was founded in 1936 in Smithfield, Virginia, establishing the town as the “Ham Capital of the World.” From hand-trimmed bacon and slow-smoked holiday hams to marinated tenderloins, Smithfield brings artistry, authenticity and a commitment to heritage, flavor, and handcrafted excellence to everything it produces. With a vast product portfolio including smoked meats, hams, bacon, sausage, ribs, and a wide variety of fresh pork cuts, the company services retail, foodservice, and deli channels across the United States and 30 countries abroad. All of Smithfield’s products meet the highest quality and safety standards in the industry. To learn more about how Flavor Hails from Smithfield, please visit www.Smithfield.com , www.Twitter.com/SmithfieldBrand , and www.Facebook.com/CookingWithSmithfield . Smithfield is a brand of Smithfield Foods.
About Smithfield Foods Smithfield Foods is a $14 billion global food company and the world's largest pork processor and hog producer. In the United States, the company is also the leader in numerous packaged meats categories with popular brands including Smithfield®, Eckrich®, Nathan's Famous®, Farmland®, Armour®, John Morrell®, Cook's®, Kretschmar®, Gwaltney®, Curly's®, Margherita®, Carando®, Healthy Ones®, Krakus®, Morliny®, and Berlinki®. Smithfield Foods is committed to providing good food in a responsible way and maintains robust animal care, community involvement, employee safety, environmental and food safety and quality programs. For more information, visit www.smithfieldfoods.com .
About Albertsons Companies Albertsons Companies is one of the largest food and drug retailers in the United States, with both a strong local presence and national scale. We operate stores across 35 states and the District of Columbia under 19 well-known banners including Albertsons, Safeway, Vons, Jewel-Osco, Shaw's, Acme, Tom Thumb, Randalls, United Supermarkets, Pavilions, Star Market, Haggen and Carrs. Albertsons Companies is dedicated to helping people across the country live better lives. In 2015 alone, along with the Albertsons Companies Foundation, the company gave more than $270 million in food and financial support to the more than 2,200 communities it serves, improving the lives of millions of people in the areas of hunger relief, education, cancer research and treatment, programs for people with disabilities, and veterans outreach. Albertsons Companies is committed to making a meaningful difference, neighborhood by neighborhood.
About Oregon Food Bank With sufficient public will and support of the entire community, we believe it is possible to eliminate hunger and its root causes. Oregon Food Bank collects and distributes food through a network of four Oregon Food Bank branches and 17 regional food banks serving Oregon and Clark County, Washington. The Oregon Food Bank Network helps nearly 1 in 5 households fend off hunger. Oregon Food Bank also leads statewide efforts to increase resources for hungry families and to eliminate the root causes of hunger through advocacy, nutrition education, garden education, and helping communities strengthen local food systems. For more information visit www.oregonfoodbank.org .
Media Contacts: Hunter PR for Smithfield Elisabeth Garcia (212) 679-6600 egarcia@hunterpr.com Safeway Jill McGinnis (503) 305-9788 jill.mcginnis@safeway.com Oregon Food Bank Myrna Jensen (503) 575-2102 mjensen@oregonfoodbank.org
