BUTLER COUNTY — Two Ohio egg producers are helping Shared Harvest Foodbank fill the tables of area families in need in Butler, Warren Preble, Miami and Darke counties.
Shared Harvest recently received 54,000 eggs, worth $5,000, from Cal-Maine Farms of Rossburg, Ohio. and Hillandale Farms/Ohio Fresh Eggs of Akron and Croton.
“Our food pantries are always looking for high-protein items, and eggs are a staple among families in need because they are so versatile,” said Shared Harvest Foodbank Executive Director Tina Osso. “With the lines of folks in need growing each day, this donation from Hillandale and Cal-Maine comes at the perfect time.”
Cal-Maine and Hillandale are among nine Ohio egg producers donating more than one million eggs to food banks throughout the state as one of several joint ventures between the Ohio Association of Second Harvest Foodbanks and the Ohio Poultry Association.
“Having wholesome, safe food to put on the dinner table should be an expectation, not a luxury, for Ohio’s families,” said John Glessner of Hillandale Farms/Ohio Fresh Eggs.
Due to the faltering economy, the demand for emergency food assistance has skyrocketed and foodbanks statewide are struggling to keep pace.
“We are grateful that Ohio’s egg farmers recognize the need for eggs at a time when Ohio foodbanks are struggling to keep food on their shelves,” said Lisa Hamler-Fugitt, executive director of the Ohio Association of Second Harvest Foodbanks.
The Ohio egg donations compliment a national initiative conducted by the United Egg Producers and Feeding America, formerly Second Harvest, that will provide more than 12 million eggs to foodbanks across the country.
