The Food Bank of Central & Eastern North Carolina is celebrating the total donations raised during Smithfield Foods Hunger Relief Day at the N.C. State Fair. 

On Oct.19, fairgoers from across the state donated six cans of food in exchange for free admission. Thanks to their generosity, and a donation of 500,000 servings of protein from Smithfield Foods, the event raised a total of more than 253,000 pounds, the equivalent of 315,547 meals, for those facing hunger in North Carolina. This tradition, which has become one of the largest one-day canned food drives in the state, supports those served by the Food Bank.

“We’re so thankful to the fairgoers, Smithfield Foods, and the N.C. State Fair,” said Charlie Hale, chief operating officer for the Food Bank. “Thanks to the donations made yesterday, thousands of pounds of food are already on the way to our friends and neighbors across our service area.”

“As a food company, hunger relief is our top philanthropic priority at Smithfield Foods,” said Jonathan Toms, senior community development manager for Smithfield Foods. “To complement all the canned foods raised from this event, it’s our honor to contribute 500,000 additional servings of nutritionally important protein to support the North Carolina communities where we live and work. Special thanks to the Food Bank and the N.C. State Fair for their partnership and shared commitment to do good for our neighbors in need.” 

The N.C. State Fair’s Hunger Relief Day has now raised more than 6.5 million pounds since its inception in 1993. Since 2008, Smithfield has donated hundreds of millions of servings of protein in all 50 states and has pledged to donate another 200 million servings by 2025. For more information on the company’s commitment to helping communities, visit this link.  

Source: Smithfield Foods