Volunteers from PepsiCo Beverages North America (PBNA), LinPepCo, United Way of Western Nebraska and Cooperative Ministries teamed up to pack 1,000 meals to reach families through school meal backpack programs in Alliance, Chadron, Hemingford, Scottsbluff, Gering and Sidney.
These meals are made possible through PepsiCo’s Food for Good program to help advance food security in communities across the US and around the world. The 1,000 meals packed at LinPepCo’s Alliance location meet or exceed USDA nutritional standards and contain: two apple sauces, two pouches chili/beans, two 6 oz juice boxes, two shelf stable milk, two 1 oz packs of cereal.
In celebration of the partnership between PBNA and its franchise business partner LinPepCo,
together they will donate $14,000 to support the continuation of United Way of Western Nebraska and Cooperative Ministries’ services to neighbors, organizations that LinPepCo have supported for more than 10 years.
Hunger is often not easy to spot but it’s prevalent in Nebraska communities.
Rates of food insecurity in Nebraska have been on the rise since February 2020, according to a Nebraska State Legislature Food Insecurity Report. More than 18% of children in Nebraska live in food insecure homes, meaning nearly 1 in 5 households don’t have enough food for every family member
to lead a healthy life, according to the USDA 2021 Household Food Insecurity Report. The food insecurity rate in both Box Butte (Alliance, Hemingford) and Scotts Bluff counties is 13 percent, according to the 2022 Nebraska County Health Reports.
There’s typically in increase in need and request for food support during the end-of-year timeframe – but this year, there’s more interest in food resources and nutrition needs expressed earlier than ever before.
(Courtesy Photos)