Comments to Blog Post Yield Truckload of Donated Food for San Francisco Food Bank

Online, October 5, 2010 (Newswire.com) - The fight against hunger in San Francisco and Marin received strong support today as Tyson Foods, Inc. provided a truckload of over 34,000 pounds of high-protein items to the San Francisco Food Bank. This donation is a result of the Food Bank's annual Hunger Challenge in which people live on a food stamp budget for a week - $4 a day per person for their entire food and drink budget. The donation was a fulfillment of a pledge to provide 100 pounds of chicken for each comment to a blog post, "Who Are the Hungry People," written by Gayle Keck of the Food Bank. The article, posted on the Tyson Foods Hunger Relief website, described the problem of hunger in San Francisco, and encouraged people to support the Hunger Challenge.

The donation was made in honor of the company's month-long celebration of its 10th anniversary of active support for hunger relief nationwide. September is also National Hunger Action Month. All together, Tyson will donate more than one million pounds of food during September to food banks in states across the country. The company has donated more than 76 million pounds of food over the last 10 years.

"There are millions of hard-working adults, children and seniors who simply cannot make ends meet and are faced with the realities of hunger," said Donnie Smith, Tyson president and CEO. "Many people don't realize the scope of hunger in their own community. We hope that by making this donation, we're not only helping feed those in need, but also bringing awareness to the issue of hunger in San Francisco."

Nationally, one in six Americans are at risk of hunger and in San Francisco one in four children and one in five adults are at risk. There are approximately 5.6 million Californians living in poverty. This year, the San Francisco Food Bank will distribute 41.5 million pounds of food to the community - enough for 88,000 meals every day. The San Francisco Food Bank works with more than 400 local nonprofit agencies to serve over 200,000 people each year throughout San Francisco and Marin.

"We are very grateful for Tyson's continued support in the fight against hunger," said Paul Ash, executive director of the San Francisco Food Bank. "This donation of poultry and other high-protein foods are especially valuable as protein is one of the most-needed items for food bank clients and one of the most difficult to obtain."

Since 2000, Tyson Foods has been a leader in the fight against hunger. The company is actively engaged in food-donation events and fund-raising activities year-round to benefit those in need. The protein given by Tyson today brings the company's total in-kind donations since 2000 to more than 76 million pounds. This milestone equates to more than 296 million meals donated to food banks and agencies serving local communities around the country. Last year alone, Tyson donated nearly eight million pounds of protein to Feeding America. For more information on how to get involved in the fight against hunger, go to http://www.tysonhungerrelief.com