America's Second Harvest Accepts 15 Million Pounds of USDA Surplus Non-Fat Dried Milk

541 Truckloads of Milk to Afflicted Hunger-Relief Programs

Chicago - November 18, 2003 - America's Second Harvest announced today it has begun receiving donations of up to 15 million pounds of either fortified instant non-fat dried milk that can be reconstituted for drinking or non-fortified product suitable for baking.

Almost 90 of the more than 200 food bank and food rescue organizations of America's Second Harvest are awaiting delivery of one or more of 541 truckloads of USDA surplus dried milk. Every year America's Second Harvest provides food for 9 million low-income children at soup kitchens, food pantries and its after-school program, Kids Cafe ® across the nation.

USDA studies show that less than 30% of school-aged kids get enough calcium in their diets, despite the recent entrée into the market of flavored milk-based beverages targeted to children.

"This product will make a big difference in the health and well-being of millions of hungry families," said Bob Forney, President and CEO of America's Second Harvest. "Through our national distribution network, we will work with USDA to get this milk distributed quickly and efficiently to millions of people who need extra help this winter."

America's Second Harvest's network reacted quickly to Secretary Veneman's offer of this product in September 2003. In less than a week, commitments from regional hunger-relief programs had reached the 15 million pounds ultimately earmarked for food banks and food rescue programs across the country.

Many America's Second Harvest programs have agreed to accept more than one full truckload of this product. The non-fat dried milk will be distributed to hungry people through America's Second Harvest's network of hunger-relief charities.

These people can use the milk in many ways, from drinking it, to fortifying cereals, oatmeal, and mashed potatoes, and even cookies, to making dips, casseroles, macaroni and cheese, and fruit smoothies, thus adding vital protein and micro-nutrients like calcium, vitamins A & D, and B-vitamins into the diets of many Americans who are lacking in these nutrients. Creative and interesting recipes using the product are available to America's Second Harvest programs throughout its' network.

"This milk donation is a win-win situation: it helps dairy farmers by removing surplus milk powder, and it provides needy and sometimes undernourished Americans with a vital source of nutrition for their diets," said Tom Camerlo, a dairy farmer from Florence, Colorado, who serves as Chairman of the National Milk Producers Federation.

"Through the distribution network of America's Second Harvest, thousands of faith-based and community-based charities will be able to enrich the diets of their clients through this donation," said Jim Towey, Director of the White House Office of the Faith Based and Community Initiative.

"We are really looking forward to this dairy product donation," said Michael Flood, Executive Director of the Los Angeles Regional Foodbank. "Dairy products are needed by many of our member charities that serve children and seniors, two groups who require extra calcium in their diets to develop properly or to offset the effects of osteoporosis. We're expecting to get about 660,000 pounds of non-fat dry milk over the next 12 months. At retail prices, to buy that much non-fat dry milk would cost the Foodbank just over two million dollars."

"The USDA's donation of this surplus product will allow us to make a nutritious source of protein and other important nutrients available to agencies that don't usually get it, like senior citizens centers, said Rodney Bivins, Executive Director at the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma, in Oklahoma City. We will receive up to 16 truckloads of the powdered milk and will make it available to nearly 500 organizations in 53 central and western Oklahoma -- 75 percent of which are faith-based charities."

Affiliates accepting milk are:

Food Bank of Alaska, Inc., Anchorage, AK

Food Bank of North Alabama, Huntsville, Ala.
Montgomery Area Food Bank, Inc, Montgomery, Ala.
Bay Area Food Bank, Theodore, Ala.

Food Bank of Northeast Arkansas, Jonesboro, Ark. Arkansas Food Bank Network, Inc, Little Rock, Ark.
United Food Bank, Mesa, Ariz.
St. Mary's Food Bank, Phoenix, Ariz.
Westside Food Bank, Sun City, Ariz.

Los Angeles Regional Foodbank, Los Angeles, Calif. Second Harvest Food Bank of San Joaquin and Stanislaus Counties, Manteca, Calif.
Senior Gleaners, Inc., North Highlands, Calif.
Food Share, Inc., Oxnard, Calif.
SH FB serving Riverside and San Bernardino Cos., Riverside, Calif.
San Francisco Food Bank, San Francisco
The Redwood Empire Food Bank, Santa Rosa, Calif.

Care and Share Food Bank, Colorado Springs, Colo.
Food Bank of the Rockies, Denver

Foodshare, Inc., Windsor, Conn.

Capital Area Food Bank, Washington, DC