NEW YORK - (Business Wire) More Information Food Banks nationwide are reporting a 25 percent increase in the number of people coming to them for help. The current recession and the continuing rise in unemployment are having a profound effect on Food Banks’ ability to meet the demand. As a result, food assistance organizations across the country have been reporting over the past year that more individuals and families are turning to them for assistance including more first-time visitors, unemployed workers, employed individuals, seniors and families with children.
“While staggering and disappointing, the Food Bank and its approximately 1,000 member food assistance sites that support New Yorkers in need have seen these numbers continually increase over time,” said Dr. Lucy Cabrera, President and CEO of the Food Bank For New York City. “In fact, the number of New York City residents experiencing difficulty affording food has been escalating for several years doubling from approximately 2 million to approximately 4 million from 2003 to 2008, representing almost half of all city residents.”
Smithfield and the United Food and Commercial Workers will address the need for hunger relief in New York City, November 9th, and will continue their efforts coast-to-coast over the next three years to donate and deliver more than 1,600,000 pounds of protein, or over 6,400,000 servings each year, to help families and individuals become more food secure.
A&P, a longstanding retail partner of Smithfield and a dedicated supporter of the Food Bank For New York City, will also be participating in the program with a special promotion in conjunction with Smithfield and the United Food and Commercial Workers.
“We want to get as much food as possible to as many needy families as possible,” said Paula Deen. “I feel so grateful that Smithfield and the United Food and Commercial Workers are helping deliver protein to the pantry.”
“Smithfield Foods is committed to hunger relief,” said Dennis Pittman, Public Affairs Director, Smithfield. “We felt the need to help shine a spotlight on an ever-increasing problem for American families. Providing hunger relief will continue to remain a priority.”
“The UFCW is committed to ensuring that families across the country have the relief and the opportunities they need to weather the current economic crises,” said Joe Hansen, UFCW International President. “All across the country UFCW members are on the frontlines of efforts to improve and strengthen their communities, and this new partnership reflects their unwavering commitment to protect and advocate for families during tough times. This partnership is about bringing together organizations with the resources, the relationships and the know-how to ensure that vulnerable communities across the country have access to well-supplied food banks. Our goal is simple: Get good, nutritious food to as many families, in as many communities, as possible.”
‘Feeding the Hungry’ is one of Smithfield Foods’ ‘Helping Hungry Homes’ initiatives. ‘Helping Hungry Homes’ was established to help ensure that American families in need do not go hungry. Smithfield Foods and its independent operating companies have a long history of stocking food banks, supporting after-school nutrition programs and providing food relief in the wake of natural disasters.
“The current economic crisis has had a critical affect on the Food Bank For New York City’s ability to meet the demand, but this gracious donation from Smithfield and the United Food and Commercial Workers will help us continue to serve the thousands of New York City residents in need this holiday season and beyond,” said Dr. Cabrera. “We have an awesome task ahead of us, but thanks to the generosity of partners like Smithfield and the United Food and Commercial Workers, we will be able to continue doing what we know how to do…feed the hungry while seeking out long-term solutions to food poverty throughout New York City.”
About the Food Bank For New York City
Food Bank For New York City recognizes 26 years as the city’s major provider of food to New Yorkers in need. The organization works to end food poverty and increase access to affordable, nutritious food for low-income New Yorkers through a range of programs and services that focus on food sourcing and distribution, education and nutrition, financial empowerment, disaster relief, policy and research.
Food Bank For New York City sources and distributes food to more than 1,000 food assistance programs, assisting the approximately 1.3 million New Yorkers who access emergency food. The Food Bank provides food safety, networking and capacity-building workshops; manages nutrition education programs for schools, after-school and emergency food programs; operates food stamp outreach and education programs; operates senior programs, a soup kitchen and food pantry; coordinates the largest civilian Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) program in the country; and develops policy and conducts research to inform community and government efforts to end food poverty throughout New York City.
About Smithfield
Smithfield, a name familiar to millions of Americans, is committed to environmental leadership, community involvement, employee safety, animal welfare and high-quality food. It is seeking to help the people of New York City by providing these needed servings of protein. With sales of $12 billion, Smithfield Foods is the leading processor and marketer of fresh pork and packaged meats in the United States, as well as the largest producer of hogs. For more information, visit www.smithfieldfoods.com.
About the United Food and Commercial Workers
The United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW) represents more than 1.3 million workers, primarily in the retail and meatpacking, food processing and poultry industries. The UFCW protects the rights of workers and strengthens America’s middle class by fighting for health care reform, immigration reform, living wages, retirement security, safe working conditions and the right to unionize so that working men and women and their families can realize the American Dream. For more information about the UFCW’s effort to protect workers’ rights and strengthen America’s middle class, visit www.ufcw.org.
More Research Statistics from the Food Bank for New York City
EMERGENCY FOOD PARTICIPANTS SURVEY
First-Time Emergency Food Participants
• More than nine in every ten (93 percent) emergency food sites experienced an increase in the number of individuals accessing emergency food for the first time.
• More than one-half (53 percent) of emergency food sites saw the number of first-time emergency food participants increase by 25 percent or more.
Employed: Almost two-thirds (63 percent) of soup kitchens and food pantries experienced an increase in the number of employed individuals accessing emergency food.
» Almost one in every five (18 percent) emergency food sites saw the number of employed individuals accessing emergency food increase by 25 percent or more.
Recently Unemployed: Approximately nine in every ten (87 percent) emergency food sites experienced an increase in the number of recently unemployed individuals accessing food assistance.
» A total of 40 percent of emergency food sites saw an increase in the number of recently unemployed individuals accessing emergency food increase by 25 percent or more.
Seniors: Two-thirds (66 percent) of all food sites experienced an increase in the number of seniors accessing emergency food.
» More than one-quarter (28 percent) of emergency food sites saw the number of seniors accessing emergency food increase by 25 percent or more.
Children: More than two-thirds (70 percent) of emergency food sites experienced an increase in the number of children accessing emergency food.
» Three-quarters (75 percent) of food pantries experienced an increase in the number of children accessing emergency food, while more than one-half (55 percent) of soup kitchens experienced an increase in the number of children.
Approximately one-third (32 percent) of emergency food sites saw the number of children accessing food assistance increase by 25 percent or more.
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Smithfield Contact
Laura Layton
Office: 404-880-4600
Cell: 404-242-5879
LLayton@golinharris.com
or
Food Bank For New York City Contact
Carol Schneider
Office: 212-566-7855 ext. 2231
Cell: 646-831-3645
cschneider@foobanknyc.org
or
UFCW Contact
Scott Frotman
Office: 202-466-1537
Cell: 202-664-7419
Sfrotman@UFCW.org
