Pork Producers provide 50,000 meals for Iowans in need

(ABC 6 News) – The Iowa Pork Producers Association (IPPA) said its new Pork in the Pantry program provided more than 50,000 meals for Iowans in need over the past few months.

Forty county pork producer organizations worked with the state association to donate pork to local food pantries which frequently are short of meat products. The IPPA matched up to $1,000 for each county, totaling nearly $40,000 statewide. 

“I am so proud of the way county pork producer organizations stepped up and delivered for Iowans in a time of need,” said IPPA President Trish Cook, a pig farmer from Winthrop. “Our first year for the Pork in the Pantry program exceeded our expectations, and we helped a lot of food-insecure Iowans with delicious and nutritious meals. Pork producers care about this state and its people, and this is just one way for us to show we care.”

The pork donations included bacon, brats, chops, ground pork, hams, loins, roasts, sausage, and tenderloins, as well as meals like precooked deli ham. Many groups purchased the pork from area meat lockers and grocery stores, helping to keep the dollars in their local communities.  

“Iowa’s pork producers are amazing,” said Joyce Hoppes, IPPA’s consumer information director. “Their support of the Pork in the Pantry program shows their commitment to making their communities better and enriching the lives of the food-insecure with some delicious and nutritious, high-quality protein meals.” 

To view the counties that participated in the Pork in the Pantry program, CLICK HERE.