California Dairy Families Partner with Feeding America and the California Association of Food Banks to Shred Hunger with Pilot Project Delivering More Than 190,000 Pounds of Cheese to Feeding Programs Throughout the State

A pilot program introduced throughout a June 1 donation occasion at Sacramento Meals Financial institution & Household Providers in Sacramento, will present 5 truckloads of cheese shreds in one-pound packages for distribution at 11 Feeding America and California Affiliation of Meals Financial institution websites. That is greater than 3 million servings or 3.6 million grams of protein to nourish households. A part of the CMAB’s #CADAIRY4GOOD, the pilot is section considered one of an ongoing partnership with Feeding America that may ship over $1 million in assets to meals banks and feeding packages to supply California dairy meals together with cheese and fluid milk, one of the requested and least donated objects at meals banks.

California Agriculture Secretary, Karen Ross, was onsite to assist make the announcement, stating: “California dairy farmers have a protracted historical past of supporting the communities the place they reside and work. I am happy to hitch Actual California Milk, Feeding America, and the California Affiliation of Meals Banks throughout dairy month to launch this partnership that gives merchandise like cheese, a wealthy supply of protein and different important vitamins, to packages that serve households all through the state.”

“Farmers feed folks, it is core to their private values,” mentioned John Talbot, CEO of the CMAB. “California dairy farmers are enthusiastic about nourishing communities all over the place with the healthful goodness of milk. We’re grateful to Feeding America for help to develop the attain of those important assets.”  

The California cheese donation will probably be distributed to 11 meals banks – Sacramento Meals Financial institution & Household Providers, Los Angeles Regional Meals Financial institution, Feeding San Diego, Orange County Meals Financial institution, Jacobs & Cushman San Diego Meals Financial institution, Second Harvest Santa Cruz County, SLO Meals Financial institution, Meals Share of Ventura County, Meals Financial institution of Contra Costa & Solano, Central California Meals Financial institution and Second Harvest of the Higher Valley. These meals banks have 3,095 neighborhood associate distribution organizations, together with soup kitchens and pantries, and collectively distributed almost 360 million meals in 2021 alone.

“A lot of our neighbors are compelled to make tough choices between paying for meals or different necessities together with housing. Low-income households spend one-third of their price range on meals which suggests rising meals prices can have a dramatic impact on meals safety,” mentioned Sam Schwoeppe, Senior Account Supervisor, Agri Sourcing Partnerships for Feeding America. “Public-private partnerships like this are a vital technique to help the susceptible members of our neighborhood and permit us to stretch assets to extend entry for all members of the neighborhood.”

“Our meals banks proceed to serve greater than 1.5x pre-pandemic demand and we do not anticipate that stopping any time quickly,” mentioned Maria Houlne, Director of Farm to Household for the California Affiliation of Meals Banks. “Meals donations and grants from famers and organizations like CMAB, coupled with public initiatives just like the state’s CalFood program that enables meals banks to buy California-grown meals, are important for meals banks to satisfy that demand. Entry to meals is a fundamental human proper.”

The #CADAIRY4GOOD platform focuses on rising entry to nourishing dairy meals for households all through California. In 2020 the CMAB supplied greater than 1 million servings of milk by way of grants to meals banks within the state and in 2021 delivered 14 refrigeration models to highschool milk pantries within the Central Valley. Section two of the 2022 program will concentrate on fluid milk with neighborhood milk drives and grants for meals banks throughout September Starvation Motion Month.

California is the primary dairy state. Its 1,100 household dairy farms are centered on delivering the healthful goodness of California milk whereas making a greener, extra sustainable future for dairy within the state.

About Actual California Milk/California Milk Advisory Board
The California Milk Advisory Board (CMAB), an instrumentality of the California Division of Meals and Agriculture, is funded by the state’s dairy farm households who lead the nation in sustainable dairy farming practices. With a imaginative and prescient to nourish the world with the healthful goodness of Actual California Milk, the CMAB’s packages concentrate on rising demand for California’s sustainable dairy merchandise within the state, throughout the U.S. and all over the world. Join with the CMAB at RealCaliforniaMilk.com, Fb, YouTube, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest.

About Feeding America
Feeding America® is the most important hunger-relief group in the US. Via a community of greater than 200 meals banks, 21 statewide meals financial institution associations, and over 60,000 associate businesses, meals pantries and meal packages, we helped present 6.6 billion meals to tens of tens of millions of individuals in want final yr. Feeding America additionally helps packages that stop meals waste and enhance meals safety among the many folks we serve; brings consideration to the social and systemic boundaries that contribute to meals insecurity in our nation; and advocates for laws that protects folks from going hungry. Go to www.feedingamerica.org, discover us on Fb or observe us on Twitter.

About California Affiliation of Meals Banks (CAFB)
The California Affiliation of Meals Banks leads the collective effort to finish starvation in California. Every single day, CAFB works to make sure its 41 member meals banks have the instruments and assets they should do what they do finest: feed our communities, whereas additionally working to alter the programs that create starvation within the first place. Be taught extra at cafoodbanks.org.

About Sacramento Meals Financial institution & Household Providers (SFBFS)
Sacramento Meals Financial institution & Household Providers is a neighborhood, nonprofit 501(c)3 group. SFBFS is devoted to helping these in want by assuaging their rapid ache and issues and shifting them towards self-sufficiency and monetary independence. With a employees of 90 and a volunteer drive of 11,000, SFBFS is dedicated to feeding 250,000 seniors, households and kids every month. Be taught extra at sacramentofoodbank.org.

SOURCE California Milk Advisory Board