Thanks to the more than 3,000 visitors who completed the Recipe Trail at this year’s Indiana State Fair, Indiana’s Family of Farmers (IFoF) will donate 3,132 pounds of food to Feeding Indiana’s Hungry (FIsH). The cash equivalent of $5,199.12 will be used to purchase food – enough for 2,610 meals – to feed Hoosier families.
“Indiana’s Family of Farmers is a valuable partner in FIsH’s mission of feeding those in need,” said Emily Weikert Bryant, executive director of Feeding Indiana’s Hungry. “At a time when one is six Hoosiers is at risk of hunger, and the number of Indiana children is as high as one in four, the assistance of Indiana’s agricultural community is crucial in getting food from the farm to the tables of those most in need of assistance.”
This donation was made possible through the IFoF Recipe Trail at the Indiana State Fair in August where fairgoers picked up recipes in eight locations around the fairgrounds. For every person who went through the trail, one pound of food was committed to FIsH and its 11 member food banks around Indiana.
This year, 3,132 people completed the trail. The Feeding America network values donated poundage at $1.66 per pound, equating to a total donation of $5,199.12. The agriculture coalition plans to continue the recipe trail during the 2013 State Fair.
“The recipe trail is a win-win for those who participate,” said Kevin Wilson, a farmer from Walton, Ind. and president of Indiana Soybean Alliance, an IFoF partner. “Fairgoers really enjoyed the recipe hunt and were excited to know their efforts would result in food for their neighbors.”
“What Indiana’s Family of Farmers does best is grow safe, nutritious food, so what better way to help than to do what we can to feed families in need,” Wilson added.
Feeding Indiana's Hungry (FIsH) is the statewide association of Feeding America affiliated food banks (formerly America’s Second Harvest). Our eleven member food banks serve more than 1,700 agencies in all 92 counties, providing emergency food assistance to Hoosiers in need.
Feeding Indiana’s Hungry, Inc. food banks statewide include:
Food Bank of Northwest Indiana, Gary
Food Bank of Northern Indiana, South Bend
Food Finders Food Bank, Inc., Lafayette
Community Harvest Food Bank of Northeast Indiana, Ft. Wayne
Second Harvest Food Bank of East Central Indiana, Inc., Muncie
Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana, Indianapolis
Terre Haute Catholic Charities Foodbank, Terre Haute
Hoosier Hills Food Bank, Bloomington
Tri-State Food Bank, Inc., Evansville
Dare to Care Food Bank, Louisville, KY
Freestore Foodbank, Cincinnati, OH
For more information on Feeding Indiana’s Hungry, Inc., visit www.feedingindianashungry.org