TYLER, Texas, Nov. 07, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, Smithfield Foods, Inc. and Brookshire Grocery Co. joined forces to donate more than 40,000 pounds of protein to East Texas Food Bank. Smithfield’s contribution was part of the company’s 2018 Helping Hungry Homes® donation tour. Now in the program’s 10th year, Helping Hungry Homes® is Smithfield’s signature hunger-relief initiative focused on alleviating hunger and helping Americans become more food secure. The donation, equivalent to more than 160,000 servings, will help families fight hunger in East Texas.

“At East Texas Food Bank, we seek to fight hunger and feed hope to the thousands of individuals, many of whom are children, who are at-risk within our communities,” said Dennis Cullinane, CEO of East Texas Food Bank. “This incredible support from Smithfield helps us to secure protein, a valuable food resource, for those we serve and allows us to build on our aforementioned mission.”

Smithfield and Brookshire Grocery Co. representatives presented the donation to East Texas Food Bank at an event this morning. Members of each organization discussed food insecurity in the local community and the significance of this donation, which will provide protein throughout the food bank’s service area, reaching more than 473,000 food insecure individuals across more than 25 counties.

“Serving others within our stores and communities is at the heart of everything we do,” said Brad Brookshire, Chairman and CEO for Brookshire Grocery Co. “Hunger relief is a cause that we are very passionate about supporting, and we are excited to again partner with Smithfield and East Texas Food Bank to assist individuals in need.”

This is the 50th large scale protein donation made by Smithfield to food banks across the country during its 2018 Helping Hungry Homes® tour. Since the program’s inception in 2008, Smithfield has provided more than 100 million servings of protein to food banks, disaster relief efforts, and community outreach programs nationwide.

“At Smithfield, we value our opportunity as a food company to provide protein resources to those in need,” said Jonathan Toms, associate manager of charitable initiatives for Smithfield Foods. “Our role in hunger relief is especially important to us as it allows us to demonstrate our company’s social purpose while building the strength of communities across the country.”

For more information about Smithfield Foods’ Helping Hungry Homes® initiative 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®, Farmer John®, Kretschmar®, John Morrell®, Cook's®, Gwaltney®, Carando®, Margherita®, Curly's®, Healthy Ones®, Morliny®, Krakus® 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, and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

About East Texas Food Bank
The East Texas Food Bank provided more than 22 million meals each year to 200 partner agencies in 26 East Texas counties. Our vision is for a hunger-free East Texas and our mission is to fight hunger and feed hope in East Texas. The East Texas Food Bank is a member of Feeding America and Feeding Texas. To learn more, visit EastTexasFoodBank.org. Find us on Facebook at facebook.com/etfoodbank or follow our news on Twitter at twitter.com/etfoodbank.

About Brookshire Grocery Co. 
Brookshire Grocery Co. is a regional family grocery business that operates over 180 stores in three states – Texas, Louisiana and Arkansas – with three distribution centers. Known for friendly service, clean stores and strong community support, BGC is celebrating its 90th anniversary this year. www.brookshires.com | www.super1foods.com | www.freshbybrookshires.com | www.spring-market.com

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A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/fbaa6ac4-33ac-4768-bc70-1d6cf827c1d9