National Hot Dog Brand Takes its Nathan's Duos Program from Virtual to In-Person at Local Community Event to Raise Awareness About Food Insecurity in the San Diego Area
SMITHFIELD, Va., Dec. 6, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- In 2020, Nathan's Famous launched its Twitch gaming program, Nathan's Duos, to match gamers to play side-by-side and create genuine moments of connection through livestreaming events. In its continued efforts to bring people together, the program transformed from online livestreams to a three-part series of in-person events to give back locally this fall.
The series concluded earlier today in San Diego, where Nathan's Famous and JoshOG met with fellow streamer n0thing to recognize the largest hunger-relief organization in the county, The Jacobs & Cushman San Diego Food Bank, with a $5,000 donation and a contribution of over 500 Nathan's hot dogs. San Diego County currently has more than 1 million people who are facing nutrition insecurity and are unable to provide three nutritious meals a day for themselves or their household.
Today's contributions will supply more than 10,000 meals to the food bank and help support the organization in its mission to provide nutritious food to people in need, advocate for the hungry, and educate the public about hunger-related issues.
"Due to the current economic climate, many San Diego families are working overtime to make ends meet and rely on the San Diego Food Bank to help provide food assistance," said Bethany Gurecki, senior brand manager for Nathan's Famous at Smithfield Foods. "We're honored to be able to assist the food bank with its incredible work of providing nutritious food to those in need."
In addition to the donation event, JoshOG and n0thing will also participate in a Nathan's Duos livestream, where they will use the platform to speak to their audiences about the importance of spending time in the community and supporting local organizations like the San Diego Food Bank.
"We are immensely grateful to Nathan's Famous for supporting our vital mission in the community. Donations are critical during this holiday season since we are continuing to feed record numbers of families facing food insecurity who are still recovering from the financial impacts of the pandemic and facing the skyrocketing prices of gas, food, and rent due to record-high inflation," said Casey Castillo, CEO for The Jacobs & Cushman San Diego Food Bank. "On behalf of the food bank's staff and family of volunteers, we thank Nathan's Famous for raising awareness about the issue of food insecurity and galvanizing the community to help San Diegans in need."
"I appreciate the San Diego Food Bank and the organizations we visited throughout this program for taking the time to bring us through their facilities and teach us about the awesome work they do in the community every day," said Josh Beaver, known as JoshOG on Twitch. "When I started streaming, I never imagined I'd be able to use my platform to support local communities in a such a meaningful way. These events with Nathan's Famous energize me to continue these important conversations in the future."
"I'm honored to be in a position to support the San Diego Food Bank and help spread the word," said Jordan Gilbert, known as n0thing on Twitch. "Many families in San Diego are struggling right now, so I hope that we can bring some attention to this important issue and inspire more people to get involved, especially during this holiday season."
The three-part event series kicked off earlier this fall with events in Denver and Las Vegas where Nathan's Famous, JoshOG and local streamers presented food banks with donations. The contributions are helping the organizations provide more than 40,000 meals to community members.
To learn more about Nathan's Famous, visit www.nathansfranks.com.
About Nathan's Famous
Nathan's is a Russell 2000 Company that currently distributes its products in 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, and sixteen foreign countries through its restaurant system, foodservice sales programs and product licensing activities. For additional information about Nathan's please visit our website at www.nathansfamous.com.
About Smithfield Foods, Inc.
Headquartered in Smithfield, Virginia, since 1936, Smithfield Foods, Inc. is an American food company with agricultural roots and a global reach. With more than 60,000 jobs globally, we are dedicated to producing "Good food. Responsibly.®" and serve as one of the world's leading vertically integrated protein companies. We have pioneered sustainability standards for more than two decades, including our industry-leading commitments to become carbon negative in our U.S. company-owned operations and reduce GHG emissions 30% across our entire U.S. value chain by 2030. We believe in the power of protein to end food insecurity and have donated hundreds of millions of food servings to our communities. Smithfield boasts a portfolio of high-quality iconic brands, such as Smithfield®, Eckrich® and Nathan's Famous®, among many others. For more information, visit www.smithfieldfoods.com, and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram.
About The Jacobs & Cushman San Diego Food Bank
Established in 1977, The Jacobs & Cushman San Diego Food Bank is a critical component to the welfare of San Diego County, providing food to people in need, advocating for the hungry and educating the public about hunger-related issues. Through a combination of programs and partnerships with nearly 500 San Diego County nonprofits, the Food Bank acts as a central repository and distribution point for donated food. The Food Bank distributed 44 million pounds of food in the Financial Year 2021 – 2022 to individuals, families and a network of nonprofit organizations that work to alleviate hunger throughout the county. Visit the Food Bank at sandiegofoodbank.org and northcountyfoodbank.org.
About JoshOG
Denver-based Josh "JoshOG" Beaver originally started streaming on Twitch in June of 2014. His original goal was to get 250 followers on his channel; however, his profile quickly grew well beyond what he had expected. He soon accumulated enough subscribers to focus on his Twitch streaming career full time. Josh plays a wide variety of games during his streams and his high levels of both game play and entertaining chat with his fans have produced a loyal group of followers that endearingly call themselves the "ducks." Josh is a loyal brand fan of Nathan's Famous hot dogs and has participated in Nathan's Duos streaming events since the platform's inception in 2019.
About n0thing
Jordan "n0thing" Gilbert is a former professional Counter-Strike player. He began competing internationally in Counter-Strike when he was just a teenager. During his professional career Jordan played for legendary Counter-Strike teams Evil Geniuses, compLexity Gaming, and Cloud 9 before moving to a full-time streaming career. He now focuses on entertaining and teaching techniques to audiences during his Twitch streams, still flexing his competitive edge.
SOURCE Smithfield Foods, Inc.
