Latest news with #hungerrelief
RNZ News
13-06-2025
- General
- RNZ News
Hunters feeding hungry Cantabrians with tonnes of venison meat
Steve Hill, co-founder of Hunters4Hope, with the group's latest monthly haul of more than 1,000 kilograms of donated venison meat for Cantabrians in need. Photo: SUPPLIED/HUNTERS4HOPE Hunters around North Canterbury have their eyes on the target to help feed around 8000 Cantabrians in need each month with donated venison meat. Around 1014kg of minced meat was donated by Hunters4Hope to social services provider Hope Community Trust in Rangiora for distribution last week. The non-profit volunteer group collected surplus venison meat or carcasses to process into mince to donate to its longstanding charitable partner. A Hope Community Trust spokesperson said it sent its regular parcels from Hunters4Hope off to more than a dozen food banks, marae and community meal providers in its network from Rolleston up to Kaikōura. Hunting duo Steve Hill and Adam Kreisel created Hunters4Hope to organise the collection of surplus venison from fellow hunters scattered around North Canterbury, and commercial trophy hunting companies. Steve Hill said the goal was to utilise surplus meat by helping people going hungry. "The basic rule of thumb - that we understand to use - is for every kilogram of meat or venison mince that's donated, it'll feed eight people," he said. "The average meal portion is 125 grams, so if you look at one kilogram, eight people, 1000 kilograms, 8000 people." So far this year, the group had donated 5808kg of venison, equating to more than 46,000 meal portions. Hill said in its first year, they donated 2100kg, just under 7000kg in their second year, and believed it was on target to send 12,000kg to the charity this year. Hill said there was a trail of chest freezers for collection scattered around the region, which was always open for more. "If local hunters have some surplus venison trim, even if it's only a bag or a kilo or two, they can drop off to one of their freezers," Hill said. "What we find a lot of that is surplus shoulder meat and and brisket meat that people don't have a lot of use for and probably the lesser grade cuts." He said commercial trophy hunting companies who hosted international hunters contributed labour and time to the cause too. "A large proportion of the venison that we get comes out of the commercial hunting outfitters. So very generously, these outfitters have got their teams on-board to skin and and bone out the deer, and harvest as much of that venison from trophy stags as they can. "And without those guys on board, we we couldn't do the volume that we are." Hill said co-founder Adam Kreisel's father and his friends "from the pub" made up "Dad's army" whose volunteer hours allowed the high volumes that were being collected. The Hope Community Trust spokesperson said local food banks and other providers worked together more these days to share resources, which had changed over the years. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
Yahoo
04-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Food banks seek state assistance
HIGH POINT — Food banks in North Carolina, including the one that serves the High Point area, are seeking extra funding from the N.C. General Assembly for the coming fiscal year to cope with greater demand for services and the loss of federal dollars. The food banks want to maintain the $6.1 million that was provided in the current state budget and receive an additional $3 million related to outreach from the impact of Tropical Storm Helene. The state House and Senate are negotiating over a final state budget after different plans were passed by each chamber. 'In light of the current environment and historic numbers of individuals seeking assistance, the food banks requested additional funds for the upcoming year,' Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest N.C. said in a statement to The High Point Enterprise. The state's food banks say that they face pressures of greater demand from people in need and a possible increase in requests for assistance if food stamp benefits are cut in the new federal budget being worked out by Congress, as the House has proposed. The food banks also lost some federal funding when the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced in March that it was cutting $11 million that food banks in North Carolina had expected to receive through the Local Food Purchase Assistance Program. The money was used by food banks to purchase food from local farmers. Second Harvest lost $2 million. The General Assembly has a history of supporting state food banks. The six Feeding America-affiliated food banks in North Carolina — along with Feeding the Carolinas, their state association that serves both Carolinas — have received grants from the state of North Carolina for the past 30 years, according to Second Harvest. Second Harvest serves a network of 500 food assistance programs in an 18-county region, including 17 agencies serving the High Point and Jamestown areas. The food bank's local partners involve 19 food pantries, four shelters and three soup kitchens. On average, local partners rely on Second Harvest for 80% of the food they provide to people in need, the food bank reports. For the new fiscal year starting July 1, Second Harvest is projecting its network will distribute nearly 40 million meals.
Yahoo
31-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
How many Kansans will a semi of mac & cheese feed? Breaking down gift to food bank
How many people will 38,000 pounds of mac and cheese feed? Hungry Kansans are about to find out. The Kansas Food Bank in Wichita, which supplies 18 million pounds of food a year to agencies that help with hunger in 85 counties statewide, got a donation Thursday from Land O'Lakes for roughly 38,000 pounds of macaroni and cheese. It will start sending the food out Monday and Tuesday to food pantries and other organizations that support hunger. Kansas Food Bank President and CEO Brian Walker said the timing is perfect: School is out and more children are missing meals. There are food programs through schools, but not everyone will be able to make it to the school to get the food. 'It's really great because macaroni and cheese has made a comeback,' Walker said. 'If we go out to eat, I don't think there's a restaurant that doesn't have macaroni and cheese.' Land O'Lakes has made large donations in the past, he said, but an entire semi-trailer full of one item is always a significant donation. The pre-cooked mac and cheese can be boiled in the bag or popped in the microwave. Here is a breakdown of how much mac and cheese that is: 24 pallets full About 52 cases on each pallet (total of 1,260 cases) Each case has six 5-pound bags of macaroni and cheese Total weight: 37,800 pounds of macaroni and cheese That would be 81,067 servings of one cup (about 7.5 ounces each) The macaroni and cheese was provided through Land O'Lakes First Run. In a December 2024 post, the company said it donated 297,675 pounds of Land O'Lakes macaroni and cheese the past year and 7.3 million pounds of food since starting the program 14 years before. 'As a farmer-owned cooperative, Land O'Lakes, Inc is deeply committed to hunger relief. This effort begins locally in the communities that our members and employees call home, many of them rural.' Land O'Lakes Senior Vice President and General Counsel Sheilah Stewart said in the 2024 statement. 'We are honored to help our Feeding America food bank partners get fresh, nutritious food directly to the families who need it most.' About 14% of Kansans fall under the threshold as being food insecure, according to Feeding America. The Kansas Food Bank said it is 20% for children.
Yahoo
31-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Hunger relief group says it's facing a $2.5 million budget shortfall due to federal cuts
Feeding South Dakota's Rapid City location on May 30, 2025. (Seth Tupper/South Dakota Searchlight) South Dakota's largest hunger-relief organization says it faces a $2.5 million budget shortfall next year because of President Donald Trump's federal funding cuts. Feeding South Dakota CEO Lori Dykstra addressed lawmakers on a budget committee Friday in Pierre. She said the group has already cut the amount of food it provides and has merged distribution sites. She warned that unless the funding gap is filled, 21 food distribution events in 15 counties will be eliminated, affecting 3,400 families and eliminating more than 1.7 million meals annually. 'We're not here to say whether or not the federal funding decisions are right or wrong,' Dykstra said. 'We're just letting you know that one of the unintentional consequences is that the food safety net for Feeding South Dakota and for all of your neighbors facing hunger is at risk.' The cuts come from the rollback of federal aid by the Trump administration, particularly programs begun during the COVID-19 pandemic to help the U.S. Department of Agriculture support food distribution. Dykstra said the group must now find $2.5 million to replace lost USDA support in fiscal year 2026, which begins July 1, or make cuts. Dykstra also warned that if the current budget reconciliation legislation in Congress is enacted, the state could be on the hook for 5% of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits and a larger share of SNAP administrative costs, adding up to a possible $13 million total state obligation. SNAP participants can use their benefits to purchase food. 'SNAP benefits get people out of food lines,' she said. 'So, it's either they're in the food bank line or they're in the grocery store.' Dykstra said 113,000 South Dakotans are food insecure, meaning they are uncertain about where their next meal will come from, often forced to skip meals, eat less, or purchase cheaper, less nutritious food. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
CBS News
27-05-2025
- Business
- CBS News
Michigan cafe with "pay-it-forward" initiative receives nearly $200K from student fundraiser
A new breakfast and lunch spot in Livingston County, Michigan, encourages people to pay it forward. Recently, the shop received kindness payments through Howell High School's Senior Survivor Fundraiser. Ivy Table Café received word that it would be the fundraiser recipient, for which students raised nearly $200,000 for the charity. "It was honestly with the help of my family and friends, just really the community bonding together," said Howell senior John Curtin, who raised between $22,000 and $23,000. Jessica Smokovitz, who co-owns Ivy Table Café, says the business is a "pay-what-you-can restaurant" staffed by volunteers. Tips left on a meal go toward providing someone else's meal. Smokovitz began using the pay-it-forward model during the COVID pandemic to provide to-go meals out of a parking lot. "If you pay a little bit extra, you're helping to fund the meal of somebody who can't," she said. "Hunger is hidden here. It doesn't look like it does on the streets of Detroit." Smokovitz said the space is designed to feel like any other restaurant. "At any point in time, you can look around this room and you don't know who's here to be blessed and who's here to be a blessing," she said. She said every cent of the money from the fundraiser will be used, from stocking local food pantries to paying for meals at Ivy Table and a little bit of building upkeep. She said the funding was incredible news. "We consider ourselves this tiny little nothing of an organization, and to see that these kids wanted to buy into our vision and wanted to be a part of what we're doing was really incredible," she said.
