Approximately 10,000 meals packaged at Council Bluffs event
(Council Bluffs, IA, August 8, 2016) – Stop Hunger Now and Southwest Iowa Renewable Energy, LLC (SIRE) recently collaborated to bring the fight against hunger to the Council Bluffs community.
More than 40 SIRE volunteers, with financial and logistical support from Syngenta, gathered on August 6th at the Westfair Amphitheater and assembled approximately 10,000 packaged meals for distribution around the world. The venue for the event was made available at no cost through the generous support of the Westfair Board.
In addition to the meals packaged on site, food items were also collected to support Council Bluffs-based Micah House, whose mission is to provide a safe and nurturing environment with support services for those families and individuals experiencing the crisis of homelessness. Financial donations to Micah House were also made by SIRE and Syngenta to complement the foodstuffs collected.
“No one should have to experience hunger,” says Brian Cahill, SIRE’s President and CEO. “We are pleased to be working with Stop Hunger Now and Syngenta to help feed people in need. Our employees and their families embraced this opportunity to make a difference in the fight against hunger.”
Stop Hunger Now meal packaging events are a volunteer-based program that coordinates the streamlined packaging of highly nutritious dehydrated meals comprised of rice, soy, vegetables and 23 essential vitamins and minerals.
“Meal packaging provides a highly visible point of entry for people to get involved in eradicating hunger. We’re one piece of a growing movement, and we invite others to join with us in nearby communities so they can help end world hunger,” says Baylee DeLauier, Program Manager for Stop Hunger Now’s Kansas City location.
Around the world, nearly 795 million people lack adequate food. Stop Hunger Now operates meal packaging locations in 20 cities throughout the U.S. and six international locations in South Africa, Malaysia, the Philippines, Italy, India and Peru. Last year, more than 353,000 volunteers from corporations, churches, schools and civic organizations packaged Stop Hunger Now meals.
Founded in 1998, Stop Hunger Now has delivered aid and disaster relief supplies in the form of food, medical supplies, clothing, school supplies and more to thousands of disaster victims and other hungry and vulnerable people in 74 countries.
Stop Hunger Now’s partnership with Syngenta began in 2014 and has resulted in tens of thousands of meals packaged by hundreds of volunteers through events in Florida, Minnesota, California and North Carolina. The meals supported school-feeding and sustainable community projects in Cambodia, Guatemala, Haiti, Nicaragua, Philippines and Swaziland.
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About Stop Hunger Now
Stop Hunger Now works to end hunger by providing food and life-changing aid to the world’s most vulnerable people, and by creating a global commitment to mobilize the necessary resources. Based in Raleigh, N.C., Stop Hunger Now operates meal packaging programs in 20 U.S. cities and in South Africa, Malaysia, India, Italy, Peru and the Philippines. For information, visit https://www.riseagainsthungerindia.org.
About Southwest Iowa Renewable Energy, LLC
SIRE is located on 275 acres in Council Bluffs, Iowa, operating a 125 million gallon per year ethanol plant. SIRE began producing ethanol in February, 2009 and sells its ethanol, distillers grains, corn syrup, and corn oil in the continental United States, Mexico and the Pacific Rim.
Visit www.sireethanol.com for corn bid information, investor relations news and employment applications.
About Syngenta
Syngenta is a leading agriculture company helping to improve global food security by enabling millions of farmers to make better use of available resources. Through world class science and innovative crop solutions, our 28,000 people in over 90 countries are working to transform how crops are grown. We are committed to rescuing land from degradation, enhancing biodiversity and revitalizing rural communities. To learn more visit www.syngenta.com and www.goodgrowthplan.com. Follow us on Twitter^® at www.twitter.com/Syngenta and www.twitter.com/SyngentaUS.
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