Smart Chicken donates 7,300 pounds of chicken to Ozarks Food Harvest for the holidays
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — Thanks to Smart Chicken’s 20th annual Smart Giving Holiday Challenge campaign, Ozarks Food Harvest will receive more than 7,300 pounds of chicken this holiday season. The Food Bank will distribute the chicken to its network of 270 community and faith-based charities to assist with the increased demand for food in southwest Missouri.
Smart Chicken’s Smart Giving Holiday Challenge donates 10 percent of poultry purchased at various retailers in November to Ozarks Food Harvest. Participating retailers include Apple Market, Country Mart, Food 4 Less, G&W Foods, Harter House, Price Cutter, Town and Country and Woods Supermarket.
“We’re so grateful to Smart Chicken for their protein donation during a time of incredible demand at Ozarks Food Harvest,” said Bart Brown, president/CEO of Ozarks Food Harvest. “As grocery and utility bills continue to rise, this donation comes at the perfect time.”
Ozarks Food Harvest reports more families are now seeking food assistance from their network of 270 community and faith-based partners than during the height of the pandemic. In the past three months, The Food Bank’s network served an average 62,000 individuals each month; nearly 12,000 more than during the same period in 2020 and 2021.
“We’d like to thank our local grocers for encouraging customers to help their neighbor during our Smart Giving Holiday Challenge campaign,” said Joe Horvath, account manager of Smart Chicken. “As more families face hunger this holiday season, we’re happy to be able to give something back to the community.”
Since 2004, Ozarks Food Harvest has received more than 147,000 pounds of poultry from Smart Chicken.
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About Ozarks Food Harvest — The Food Bank
Ozarks Food Harvest is the Feeding America food bank for southwest Missouri, serving 270 hunger-relief organizations across 28 Ozarks counties. The Food Bank reaches 50,000 individuals monthly and provides more than 20 million meals annually. Learn more at ozarksfoodharvest.org, facebook.com/ozarksfoodharvest, or twitter.com/ozksfoodharvest.