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Donation of pork feeds Missouri’s food-insecure
More than a hundred donated hogs are helping to feed
food-insecure people in Missouri. The Missouri Farmers Care Drive to Feed Kids partnered with the Missouri Pork Association to give more
than 10,500 pounds of ground pork to the Food Bank for Central and Northeast
Missouri, which by Food Bank calculations comes out to about 48,000 servings.
The fact that
packers are operating at about 80 percent capacity because of the COVID
outbreak means there are more hogs available, according to Don Nikodim,
executive director of the Missouri Pork Association.
“When we’re below
95 percent [of processing capacity] that means there are a lot of pigs that
aren’t getting to go to market like they should,” Nikodim told Brownfield Ag
News.
Packing plant
closures and slowdowns resulted in weekly pig processing numbers falling to
about 1.5 million nationally, meaning pigs put on more weight and some had to
be euthanized. Nikodim said, however, that processing is recovering.
“If we can get that
number back up into the 2.3 million or 2.4 million pigs per week, then we’ll
start to see this thing moderate a little bit,” said Nikodim. “But it’s going
to take a while.”
Pigs in the first
round of donations were given by JBS packing company as well as by individual
Missouri producers, said Nikodim. This includes Bill Kessler, a pig farmer from
Mexico, Missouri, one of the first to donate to the program.
“It’s great to
see everyone come together right now – our farmers, our local processors, and
our communities,” Kessler said. “It’s so important that we all give
where we can, and I was proud to be a part of this effort. We’re really
fortunate to not be in such a tight spot as some of our fellow pork producers,
and appreciate the work everyone’s doing to help it stay that way.”
Since it launched
in 2017, the Drive to Feed Kids has focused on food insecure children across
Missouri, said Missouri Pork’s Nikodim. “We’re proud to have been part of
the effort each year, and especially now to see how our partners across
agriculture have stepped up to address the needs during these challenging
times. Missouri agriculture has a track record of coming together to solve
problems, and this is one way to help in today’s tough situation. While the
backlogged pork processing plants continue their work, this partnership
provides for hog producers without markets and helps meet increased demands on
our food banks.”
More donations will
be made when processing can be scheduled. Pig farmers and meat processors can
take part by contacting the Missouri Pork Association. Individuals and
companies can donate funds to support the effort at MOFarmersCare.com/drive.
More than $100,000
has already been raised for the effort. Missouri’s agricultural organizations
and businesses, including Missouri Farm Bureau Federation, Missouri Farm Bureau
Insurance, Missouri Soybean Merchandising Council, Missouri Soybean
Association, FCS Financial, MFA Incorporated, Archer Daniels Midland (ADM),
Forrest and Charlotte Lucas, founders of Protect the Harvest, Missouri Corn
Merchandising Council, Paseo Biofuels, LLC, and Biofuels, LLC have donated to
cover processing and transportation costs in this partnership.
In 2019, the Drive
to Feed Kids donated 4.3 million meals. Feeding Missouri’s six regional partner
food banks distributed the food statewide.
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