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Tyson Foods Announces 1 Million Pounds to Be Donated to Feeding America Food Banks During the 2008 Holiday Season
CHICAGO, IL, Dec 03, 2008 (MARKET WIRE via COMTEX) --
Tyson Foods, Inc. (NYSE: TSN) and Lift Up America teamed up with the
Chicago Bulls and other professional and college sports programs to
donate 33 truckloads of Tyson chicken to help restock the shelves at
Feeding America's affiliate food banks across the nation.
"Our food banks are calling us every day, telling us that demand for
emergency food is higher than it has ever been in our history," said
Vicki Escarra, president and CEO of Feeding America. "They are serving
a significant number of new clients -- people who were once their
donors, middle class workers who can no longer make ends meet, many
of the half-million people who have lost their jobs in just the past
two months as unemployment has climbed."
The goodwill delivery tour to fight hunger kicked off today at 3:30
p.m. on December 1 in the parking lot of the United Center, where
Bulls players and mascot Benny the Bull assisted in donating a
truckload of food to the Greater Chicago Food Depository, one of the
200 members of the Feeding America food bank network. Starting in
Chicago, the 1 million pound donation to Feeding America affiliate
food banks across the United States will be delivered within the next
two weeks.
"We've continued in the fight against hunger in this country for
nearly a decade now and we're hearing the call from across the
nation," says Dick Bond, president and CEO of Tyson Foods. "At Tyson
our goal is to support families through food donations and to
encourage other companies and individuals to identify ways they can
share resources and make an impact in the fight against hunger."
"Lift Up America is proud of the partnership and team spirit between
these great organizations," said Dave Hannah, CEO of Lift Up America.
"It is important, especially this time of year, that every company,
and individual, identifies ways that they can give back."
This is the fifth year in which Tyson has partnered with Lift Up
America and its network of professional and college sports teams to
distribute food and create awareness of the issue of hunger.
More than 36.2 million Americans, including 12.4 million children,
are food insecure. Food insecurity in the United States is rising
rapidly with the downturn in the economy and employment. Feeding
America food banks across the country are experiencing significant
increases in requests for food assistance, especially during the
holiday season. Click here for more information on rising food
insecurity.
Tyson Foods is the world's largest processor and marketer of chicken,
beef and pork. As part of their ongoing commitment to hunger relief,
Tyson Foods has donated more than 54 million pounds of protein to
local food banks in the past year. Click here for more information on
Tyson Hunger Relief.
Sports teams involved in the donations include
Chicago (Bulls)
Kansas City (Chiefs)
Miami (Dolphins)
San Diego (Chargers)
Denver (Nuggets)
Boise (Boise State)
Detroit (Lions)
Austin
(University of Texas)
San Jose (Sharks)
Cleveland (Indians)
Phoenix (Suns)
Jacksonville (Jaguars)
Northwest Arkansas
(University of Arkansas)
Other community donations include
Northern Illinois (St. Charles)
Texarkana, Arkansas
Fort Smith,
Arkansas
Northeast Arkansas
Lincoln, Nebraska
Houston, Texas
Storm
Lake, Iowa
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CONTACTS:
Gary Mickelson
Tyson Foods, Inc.
479-290-6111
Email Contact
Cindy Hestand
Lift Up America
858-485-1493
Email Contact
Ross Fraser
Feeding America
312-263-2303
Email Contact
Christine Cronin
Chicago Bulls
312-455-4113
SOURCE: Tyson Foods
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