For the 11th consecutive year, Ford Motor Company and Newman’s Own Inc are partnering with Feeding America, the nation’s largest domestic hunger relief organization, to donate Ford refrigerated trucks filled with Newman’s Own food products to five US regions with communities in need.
The two organizations have worked in partnership for a decade to contribute 103 refrigerated trucks to help Feeding America food banks deliver nutritious perishable foods.
With the recent donation of five more vehicles, the fleet of Ford trucks and vans reaches every state in the nation—many states with multiple vehicles.
“Ford Motor Company has remained committed to playing a role in addressing hunger relief year after year,” said Jim Vella, president, Ford Motor Co Fund and Community Services. “Through this unique partnership, our donated trucks have delivered more than 176 million meals to families across the country.”
This “Partnership for Hunger Relief” began when actor Paul Newman reached out to Bill Ford, then chairman and chief executive officer of Ford Motor Co, in an effort to improve distribution of produce and other perishable food to those facing hunger in rural America. The refrigerated trucks allow for delivery of food to hard-to-reach communities and are now also servicing urban and suburban areas that have an urgent need for food.
Regions and food banks receiving trucks in autumn 2011 are Atlanta Community Food Bank (Atlanta GA), Dare to Care Food Bank (Louisville KY), Harry Chapin Food Bank of Southwest Florida (Fort Myers FL), Josephine County Food Bank (Grants Pass OR), and Inter-Faith Food Shuttle (Raleigh NC).
“We have seen a dramatic rise in the number of people seeking food assistance from the Feeding America network. Today, we are feeding 37 million people each year—a staggering 46% increase since 2006,” said Vicki Escarra, president and CEO of Feeding America.
Supplying food to more than 37 million Americans annually, including 14 million children and 3 million seniors, Feeding America serves more than 200 member food banks that support 61,000 agencies addressing hunger.
To obtain more information, visit www.feedingamerica.org, www.ford.com, or www.newmansownfoundation.org.
