Peanut butter for needy families in Texas
E-mail story
It's easy. Send a link to the story you were just reading to a friend. Just fill out the form on this page and we'll send it along.
Your name and e-mail address are transmitted to the recipient. Otherwise, it is considered private information; see Privacy policy.
The Church-owned Houston Peanut Butter Cannery has teamed with the Houston Food Bank to provide protein-based food for thousands of needy families in their communities.
Through the project — funded by the Church and philanthropic donors of the Houston Food Bank — community and Church volunteers filled 42,000 jars of peanut butter distributed to 187 agencies that are in 18 counties. An additional 23,000 jars will be filled before the project ends May 15, said Larry Talley, the Church's humanitarian service director in Houston.
Warren Brice, director of marketing at the Houston Food Bank, said his organization is always in need of protein-based food. Peanut butter is especially useful, as it does not need refrigeration and is something everyone — "kids, senior citizens, everyone" — will eat, he said.
"It is sort of a partnership," he said of the program that started earlier this year when the Church approached the food bank and asked if they could help.
A grant from Humanitarian Service in Salt Lake City provides sugar, salt and other ingredients as well as jars, lids and food labels for the peanut butter project. Donors to the Houston Food Bank provide the peanuts, or an estimated 78 cents per 28 ounce jar.
Businesses, community groups and Church members work four-hour shifts to process the material.
"You should see the expression in their eyes," said Mr. Brice of the volunteers. "They see the peanuts. They smell the peanuts. They know where it goes and they like it."
The Houston Food Bank, which relies on donations of food and money, processes 23 million pounds of canned, frozen and fresh food each year and distributes that food to 500 agencies in the surrounding area.
The peanut butter will feed children this summer who have relied on the school lunch program and could also be used by the American Red Cross, should an emergency arise, said Brother Talley.
Mr. Brice said the peanut butter, which is produced every two weeks, is gone from the food bank before a new shipment arrives. Each participating agency has a five-case limit on how much peanut butter, distributed at no charge, they can request. "Sixty-five thousand jars will go very quickly," he said. "We are always waiting on the next load."
And while the food bank has worked with other organizations on similar projects, such as the production of rice, Mr. Brice said a project with peanut butter has never been undertaken before.
The project has garnered lots of attention; all the major local television stations and many local newspapers have reported on the unique partnership.
Mr. Brice sums up the experience simply: "Everybody pays a little bit. Everybody serves a little bit," he said. "There's lots of win, win stuff here."
Email: sarah@desnews.com
