Falcon Rice of Crowley donated 42,000 pounds of rice to Second Harvest Food Bank today.
This is the second year that Falcon Rice has donated an 18-wheeler load of rice to the bank.
The donation is the result of the September "Have a Rice Day" promotion, where the Trahan family, owners of Falcon rice, pledged to donate a half-pound of rice for every 5-pound bag of their Cajun Country Rice brand sold in local grocery stores.
"We're thrilled to partner with Falcon Rice, producer of the Cajun Country Rice brand, for this promotion at Rouses, Walmart, and Winn Dixie locations throughout Southwest Louisiana," said Second Harvest Food Sourcing Specialist Natasha Curley. "Rice is such a perfect food to donate as it provides nutrition and meal flexibility for the thousands of families we serve every month, and our locally-grown rice is some of the best in the world."
The rice, delivered in giant 2,000 pound canvas "super sack" bags, will be re-bagged by Second Harvest volunteers into smaller bags to be to be distributed to local community food pantries, soup kitchens, and shelters.
"We just want to be here for the community, and we have a product that stretches so far when you're talking about feeding families," said Robert Trahan, Director of Sales and Business Development at Falcon Rice. "We're proud to support what Second Harvest does for Acadiana and all of South Louisiana."
Second Harvest Food Bank is an affiliated ministry of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans, a member of Feeding America, and a United Way Partner Agency. We lead the fight against hunger and building food security in South Louisiana by providing food access, advocacy, education and disaster response. Second Harvest provides food to more than 700 partners and programs across 23 parishes, from the Mississippi border to the Texas state line. Together, we make up the largest charitable anti-hunger network in the state. With our community's help, we can make food security a reality for every household in South Louisiana.
More information, or if you'd like to help, visit www.no-hunger.org or the Facebook page here.
Second Harvest Food Bank distributes commodities to eligible, needy families under the Food Bank Program in 23 south Louisiana parishes. Commodities will be given on a first come, first serve basis as a part of the normal food package provided by the site. Commodities can only be given to registered applicants.
