Iowa Farm Bureau and Fareway partner to provide protein to Iowa food banks. 

A truckload of meat donated by the Iowa Farm Bureau Federation (IFBF) and Fareway Stores last week will put high-value protein on the plates of Iowans facing unprecedented need during the holiday season, says Tami Nielsen, president and CEO of the Food Bank of Iowa.

The donation, part of Farm Bureau and Fareway’s annual Meat the Need partnership, includes 23 pallets totaling 25,000 pounds of meat — the equivalent of 100,000 servings of protein for Iowans in need. 

This marks the fourth consecutive year of the Meat the Need initiative, which ensures families across Iowa have access to essential protein during a critical time of year.

“Protein is very expensive. If you are on a very tight budget, you might not be able to afford (meat) with your SNAP dollars or your own grocery dollars,” says Nielsen. “Any time we get meat donated, it’s a great day. Our partners order it as soon as they see it on our inventory.

“It’s highly valued and highly nutritious. It will go out the door as quickly as it came in.”

The donation was delivered last week to the Food Bank of Iowa, which will work with five other Iowa Food Bank Association partners to distribute the meat through organizations serving all 99 Iowa counties. 

It included 12,000 pounds of Dos Rios taco meat, which Fareway secured through a partnership with Two Rivers food service, and 13,000 pounds of ground pork from Webster City Custom Meats.

“Iowa farmers take great pride in growing and raising the food that supports our communities,” Iowa Farm Bureau President Brent Johnson says. 

“Food insecurity is a challenge that many families are currently facing, and Iowa Farm Bureau is proud to partner with Fareway again to ‘Meat the Need’ and provide fresh, high-quality protein to those who need support.”

Helping neighbors in a time of need is something that comes naturally to farmers, even as they face economic challenges of their own, Johnson adds.

“Profitability on Iowa farms has been challenging for the last couple of years, but that doesn’t really change the character of farmers in this state,” he says. “Even though things are tough at home, Iowa’s farmers continually stand up and help their neighbors in need.”  


PICTURED ABOVE:  Iowa Farm Bureau President Brent Johnson said Iowa farmers take pride in growing and raising the food that supports communities. Partnering with Fareway in the Meat the Need program, which provided 25,000 pounds of protein to Iowa food banks this year, is a valuable step toward meeting the challenge of food insecurity many families face. PHOTO / CONRAD SCHMIDT


Record demand

Demand at Iowa’s food banks is shattering previous records by a staggering margin as the result of rising food costs and the government shutdown that temporarily interrupted Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, Nielsen reports. 

Beginning in October, orders have been averaging 60% to 70% higher than they were during September, she says.

“Our team typically pulls about 100,000 pounds for orders every day to send out into our 55-county service area, and (now) they’re pulling 160,000 to 170,000 pounds every day,” says Nielsen. “The need just really skyrocketed. There’s been a lot of heavy lifting, literally, that’s been going on to get that food out the door. 

“Our partners are reporting that they’re seeing sometimes double and triple the number of folks that they normally see in a day.”

That includes a high number of first-time visitors who previously didn’t rely on the charitable food system, Nielsen notes. 

The surge in demand has strained food bank budgets, she adds. Nielsen reports that the Food Bank of Iowa recently has been spending more on purchased food every month than it did during the entire year of 2019. 

Iowans who want to donate or volunteer can go to the Food Bank of Iowa’s website at www.foodbankiowa.org or find a food pantry in their own community.