MILWAUKEE, July 11, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, Smithfield Foods' Helping Hungry Homes® initiative, a program focused on alleviating hunger and helping Americans become more food secure, joined forces with Piggly Wiggly to donate more than 35,000 pounds of protein to Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin. The donation, equivalent to more than 120,000 servings, will help families fight hunger across eastern Wisconsin where one in seven individuals are food insecure.

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/9b001104-a007-4fd5-9714-e83a5c258592

"Summer is a time when our member pantries see a spike in demand for food," said Patti Habeck, president of Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin. "Children are out of school and many are going without the school-based meals they depend on for daily sources of protein, which we know is so vital to a child's development. We are grateful for this incredible donation, which will ensure that hundreds of children return to school in the fall well-nourished and ready to learn."

Smithfield and Piggly Wiggly representatives presented the donation to Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin at the event this morning. Members from all three organizations discussed food insecurity in the local community and the significance of this donation in helping the more than 460,000 individuals who face hunger each day in the food bank's service area.

"At Piggly Wiggly, we value our role as a member of our local community and strive to do our part to help our community members in need," said Pat Fox, president of Fox Brothers Piggly Wiggly. "Today, with Smithfield, we are able to further our support to our neighbors in need and provide protein—a valuable resource in the fight against hunger and food insecurity."

Smithfield's donation to Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin was a part of the Helping Hungry Homes® 2017 nationwide donation tour. Throughout the annual tour, Smithfield will provide large-scale protein donations to nearly 60 food banks across the country. This donation adds to the more than 65 million servings of protein donated since 2011.

"At Smithfield, we feed people, and we're passionate about providing protein to those who need it most throughout the year," said Dennis Pittman, senior director of hunger relief for Smithfield Foods. "Today's donation will bring further awareness of the issue of hunger across eastern Wisconsin and provide nutrition for the many people this food bank serves."

Following today's event, Helping Hungry Homes® will visit Wichita, Kansas, Thursday, July 13. For more information about Helping Hungry Homes® and a list of upcoming donation events, visit helpinghungryhomes.com.

About Smithfield Foods
Smithfield Foods is a $15 billion global food company and the world's largest pork processor and hog producer. In the United States, the company is also the leader in numerous packaged meats categories with popular brands including SmithfieldⓇ, EckrichⓇ, Nathan's FamousⓇ, FarmlandⓇ, ArmourⓇ, John MorrellⓇ, Cook'sⓇ, KretschmarⓇ, GwaltneyⓇ, Curly'sⓇ, MargheritaⓇ, CarandoⓇ, Healthy OnesⓇ, KrakusⓇ, MorlinyⓇ and BerlinkiⓇ. Smithfield Foods is committed to providing good food in a responsible way and maintains robust animal care, community involvement, employee safety, environmental and food safety and quality programs. For more information, visit www.smithfieldfoods.com.

About Fox Brothers Piggly Wiggly
Fox Brothers is a Piggly Wiggly franchisee founded in 1988 by brothers Pat and Bob Fox. In 2010 Pat Fox and his wife Lori acquired full ownership from Bob Fox. On April 23rd of this year, Fox Bros. became a 100% Employee owned Company as Pat and Lori formed an ESOP for their employees. The company has expanded through the years and now has seven Wisconsin locations in Hartland, Hartford, Jackson, Oconomowoc, Richfield/Hubertus, Saukville, and Slinger. Fox Bros. strives for constant improvement, superior customer service, and community involvement, having donated more than 1.3 million in cash and merchandise to various community groups and organizations.

About Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin
Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin is the leading hunger relief organization in the state with locations in Milwaukee and the Fox Valley. Founded in 1982 by the Rotary Club of Milwaukee, Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin is a local and independent member of the Feeding America network. Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin collaborates with 600+ members, including food pantries, meal programs and shelters to provide more than 21 million meals annually to nearly 400,000 people across 36 counties in eastern Wisconsin. Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin also supports programs that improve food security for people facing hunger and works collaboratively with community partners to solve hunger. Together we can solve hunger. To learn more about hunger in Wisconsin, visit www.feedingamericawi.org. Join the conversation! Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.

Media Contacts:

Dalton Agency for Smithfield
Kaytee Allaben
(904) 226-9890
kallaben@daltonagency.com

Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin
Natalie Jansky
(414) 831-6311
njansky@feedingamericawi.org

Piggly Wiggly
Pat Fox
(414) 870-4791
pfox@shopthepig.com