Local Video Featuring High School Food Drive
Earns Maine Food Bank 17 Tons of Tyson Protein
Lorraine Arromando and Cheverus High School’s hunger video wins more than 35,000 pounds of protein for Good Shepherd Food-Bank
AUBURN, Maine, March 11, 2010 – Last fall, Tongal.com and Tyson Foods, Inc. (NYSE:TSN) announced a collaborative effort to raise awareness for hunger relief in America through a video contest. Thanks to Lorraine Arromando’s video highlighting Cheverus High School’s annual Thanksgiving food drive, Tyson Foods donated more than 35,000 pounds of much-needed chicken to Good Shepherd Food-Bank this morning. This is the first of the five winning videos that will receive Tyson donations to their local Feeding America food banks.
“This significant food donation from Tyson will allow us to impact lives when the need for food has never been greater,” said Rick Small, executive director of the Food-Bank. “Donations of poultry and other high-protein foods are especially valuable as they allow us to provide our agencies with more healthy, nutritious options. We are also especially grateful to Ms. Arromando for entering a video on behalf of Good Shepherd Food-Bank and to the students and staff at Cheverus High School for giving back so generously to their community each year through their Thanksgiving food drive.”
Every year, Cheverus High School holds a major Thanksgiving food drive, which enables them to deliver hundreds of holiday food baskets to food-insecure families in the greater Portland area. Now in their 40th year, CHS has seen a significant increase in the number of people needing food assistance. This year the school donated 626 food baskets. Good Shepherd Food-Bank collects and distributes food to more than 600 food pantries, soup kitchens and community programs throughout all 16 counties in Maine. Last year alone, the Food-Bank distributed over 12 million pounds of food throughout the state of Maine, which ranks ninth in the nation for food insecurity. Recent studies indicate that over 37 million pounds of food or more than 29 million meals would need to be distributed throughout Maine each year to feed everyone who is food insecure. “It’s more urgent than ever to bring support and hunger relief to food-insecure families throughout the U.S.,” said Donnie Smith, president and CEO for Tyson Foods. “At Tyson, our Team Members are proud to be part of the ongoing relief efforts.”
The Tongal video contest was an effort to bring together the creative power of the online video community to raise awareness for hunger relief in America. Tongal, in association with Tyson Foods, sponsored the short video contest to honor the dedicated men, women and children that work to eliminate hunger in their community. The top five winners of the video contest earned a truckload of Tyson protein for their local Feeding America food bank. The eight-week contest ended Jan. 6 with winning videos coming from New York, Arizona, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Maine.
Since 2000, Tyson Foods has been a leader in the fight against hunger. The company is actively engaged in food-donation events and fund-raising activities year-round to benefit those in need. The protein given by Tyson today brings the company’s total in-kind donations since 2000 to more than 73 million pounds. This milestone equates to more than 292 million meals donated to food banks and agencies serving localcommunities around the country. Last year alone, Tyson donated nearly eight million pounds of protein to Feeding America. For more information on how to get involved in the fight against hunger, go to http://hungerrelief.tyson.com/.
Good Shepherd Food-Bank, The largest hunger relief organization in Maine, Good Shepherd Food-Bank provides for those at risk of hunger by soliciting and distributing surplus food to more than 600 partner agencies. Since 1981, the Food-Bank has partnered with individuals, businesses and farmers to alleviate hunger and build community relationships. During fiscal year 2008-2009, the Food-Bank distributed 12 million pounds of food to families and individuals throughout Maine. Web site: www.gsfb.org. Phone: 207-782-3554. Facebook: www.facebook.com/feedingmaine
Tongal, Co-founded by James DeJulio, Mark Burrell and Rob Salvatore with the goal of democratizing the way online content is created, Tongal bridges the gap between creative people around the world and businesses that need them. The company launched its unique online platform that combines crowd sourcing and performance games to deliver professional quality commercials, music videos, short films and instructional videos in May of 2009. Tongal's founders believe that in today's world, a great idea or video can come from anywhere, so now they are proving it by building a collaborative community that gives creative individuals with a wide variety of skill sets an opportunity to work, connect with one another, express themselves and get paid for what they love to do.
Tyson Foods, Inc. (NYSE:TSN - News), founded in 1935 with headquarters in Springdale, Arkansas, is one of the world's largest processors and marketers of chicken, beef and pork, the second-largest food production company in the Fortune 500 and a member of the S&P 500. The company produces a wide variety of protein-based and prepared food products and is the recognized market leader in the retail and foodservice markets it serves. Tyson provides products and services to customers throughout the United States and more than 90 countries. The company has approximately 117,000 Team Members employed at more than 400 facilities and offices in the United States and around the world. Through its Core Values, Code of Conduct and Team Member Bill of Rights, Tyson strives to operate with integrity and trust and is committed to creating value for its shareholders, customers and Team Members. The company also strives to be faith-friendly, provide a safe work environment and serve as stewards of the animals, land and environment entrusted to it.
