Publix Donates 1.3M Pounds of Produce to Feeding America Food Banks
As part of Publix’s ongoing commitment to helping alleviate hunger, the company is purchasing and delivering another 1.3 million pounds of fresh produce to 32 Feeding America partner food banks this holiday season. This donation is in addition to the 1.3 million pounds of produce Publix donated at Thanksgiving.
These donations are part of the company’s commitment through its biannual Feeding More Together register campaign. Publix donates $10 million each year to purchase and deliver produce to Feeding America partner food banks. Customer donations provide shelf-stable and additional perishable food for local food banks and pantries. In 2023 alone, Publix has donated more than 24 million pounds of produce to Feeding America partner food banks.
“As we head into a season that should be full of joy, many families and individuals in our communities struggle to put food on their tables,” said Publix CEO Todd Jones. “We want to help make this time a little brighter by providing fresh produce for people in need. At Publix, we’re committed to helping alleviate hunger and doing good, together for our communities.”
Publix, the largest employee-owned company in the U.S. with more than 250,000 associates, currently operates 1,359 stores in Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia. For 26 consecutive years, the company has been recognized by Fortune as a great place to work. In addition, Publix’s dedication to superior quality and customer service is recognized among the top in the grocery business. For more information, visit the company’s newsroom at corporate.publix.com/newsroom.
Below are the 32 Feeding America partner food banks receiving produce:
Alabama
- Central Alabama Food Bank
- Feeding the Gulf Coast
- Food Bank of North Alabama
- Montgomery Area Food Bank
Florida
- Feeding Northeast Florida
- Feeding South Florida
- Feeding Tampa Bay
- Harry Chapin Food Bank
- Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida
- Second Harvest of the Big Bend
- Treasure Coast Food Bank
Georgia
- America’s Second Harvest of Coastal Georgia
- Atlanta Community Food Bank
- Feeding the Valley Food Bank
- Food Bank of Northeast Georgia
- Second Harvest of South Georgia
Kentucky
- Dare to Care Food Bank
North Carolina
- Food Bank of Central & Eastern North Carolina
- Food Bank of the Albemarle
- Inter-Faith Food Shuttle
- MANNA FoodBank
- Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest North Carolina
- Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina
South Carolina
- Harvest Hope
- Lowcountry Food Bank
Tennessee
- Chattanooga Area Food Bank
- Second Harvest Food Bank of Northeast Tennessee
- Second Harvest Food Bank of East Tennessee
- Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee
Virginia
- Feed More
- Fredericksburg Regional Food Bank
- Virginia Peninsula Foodbank
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California Table Grape Growers Offer Scholarships
Three categories of scholarships, offered by California table grape growers, are available to graduating high school seniors from the table grape growing regions of California.
Of the three categories of scholarships, two are available to field workers and their families.
The first category is a Bridge Scholarship for $14,500 and is available to graduating seniors who will attend two years of a community college and transfer to a four-year university.
The second category is a $25,000 scholarship for graduating seniors who will attend a four-year university.
The third category of scholarship is a $25,000 Agricultural Scholarship available to students residing in the Coachella or San Joaquin valleys who will attend a four-year university and are interested in a field of study applicable to the table grape industry.
Three scholarships from each category are available. Applicants for all scholarships must plan to attend a California college or university. The deadline to apply for all scholarships is Friday, Feb. 9, 2024 at 5 p.m.
Since 1985, California table grape growers have aided nearly 200 students in attending college.
To hear recent scholarship recipients in their own words, please visit: https://www.grapesfromcalifornia.com/community-outreach/scholarship-recipients/
For more information on the scholarship program, please visit: https://www.grapesfromcalifornia.com/community-outreach/ or email: Scholarships@grapesfromcalifornia.com.
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NatureSweet, Tomato Groups Urge Saving 2019 Agreement
With broad support from tomato producers, trade associations, state and local leaders, and beyond, NatureSweet has submitted comments to the U.S. Department of Commerce strongly urging the government to preserve the 2019 Tomato Suspension Agreement, which is critical to ensuring stability and fair practices in the market for fresh tomatoes.
A small group of domestic tomato producers is petitioning the Department of Commerce to terminate a longstanding trade agreement between the United States and importers of fresh tomatoes from Mexico. The Tomato Suspension Agreement, which has been in place in various forms since 1996 and was most recently renegotiated in 2019, ensures fair trade practices and a stable market for imports of fresh tomatoes from Mexico to the United States. Without the 2019 Suspension Agreement in place, NatureSweet and countless other companies would face tariffs of more than 20 percent on the import of fresh tomatoes into the United States.
“The suspension agreement is critical to keeping specialty tomato varieties on American grocery store shelves,” says Skip Hulett, vice president of general counsel for NatureSweet. “Nearly all of the grape and cherry tomatoes consumed by American families come from Mexico, where growing conditions are ideal for year-round production.”
NatureSweet, an agricultural company headquartered in Texas, has been producing high-quality, flavor-rich produce for more than 30 years. The company has operations in both the United States and Mexico and employs more than 6,000 agricultural workers. Terminating the suspension agreement would not only impact NatureSweet’s ability to provide fresh produce to Americans, but it would also jeopardize jobs and the company’s ability to continue transforming the lives of agricultural workers in North America.
“We provide year-round jobs, pay our employees almost 40 percent above the median wage for agricultural workers, we help our workers obtain access to improved medical care services, education, and develop careers,” says Hulett. “This tariff would punish companies like NatureSweet, which are doing the right thing.”
In a compliance audit released this month, the Department of Commerce found zero consequential violations of the agreement by importers of fresh tomatoes. Importers continue to play by the rules to deliver fresh, quality tomatoes to American families.
Recently, a coalition of more than 400 companies across the supply chain representing 32 states signed a letter to the Commerce Department urging the Department to keep the agreement in place. NatureSweet will continue to partner with industry leaders to encourage Commerce to reach a resolution that allows economies on both sides of the border to continue thriving.
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