By Shelby Shank
Field Editor

The Texas Farm Bureau (TFB) Young Farmer & Rancher (YF&R) Advisory Committee donated 186 pounds of pork to Calhoun County Community Ministries through TFB’s Farmers Feeding Families program.

The program aims to reduce food insecurity at the local level and encourages county Farm Bureaus to donate livestock, volunteer time, make monetary donations and contribute food items to support local organizations and food distribution efforts.

Hailey Hayes, chair of the YF&R Advisory Committee and her husband, Cassidy, raise pigs in Port Lavaca and donated one to the committee for the Farmers Feeding Families program.

“We donated a pig because we wanted to give back to Farm Bureau, an organization that gives us so much,” Hayes said. “In turn, our donation through Farmers Feeding Families will help many in the community have access to a protein source.”

The donation was delivered to the Calhoun County Community Ministries, an organization that provides immediate assistance to Calhoun County residents in need.

“Farmers and ranchers grow and raise our food, and giving back to our communities in Texas is super important,” Hayes said. “Many people don’t have the opportunity to buy directly from farmers and ranchers or fully realize how much they contribute to local economies and communities.”

The rising cost of groceries has made protein sources especially difficult for some families to afford.

“I saw a statistic recently about what it costs per household at the grocery store, and I was mind-blown by the breakdown per person,” Hayes said. “Protein is one of the most important nutrients, so it’s essential that everyone has the opportunity to access it.”

In just three months, the Farmers Feeding Families program, which is coordinated by TFB’s YF&R Advisory Committee, has donated over 2,900 pounds of protein across Texas.

“There have been significant donations in various communities over the last three months, and it’s amazing to see how much we’ve been able to accomplish in such a short amount of time,” she said. “I see that number rising even more over the remainder of the year.”

For more information about the Farmers Feeding Families program or to learn how to donate, contact your county Farm Bureau or visit texasfarmbureau.org/fff.