Save Mart and Lucky Supermarkets supermarkets have kicked off the “Peanut Butter with a Purpose” partnership with food banks throughout California and Northern Nevada to collect donations of peanut butter and raise awareness of the struggle many families have feeding their children during the summer months.
Last year, food banks throughout the region received more than 16 tons of peanut butter thanks to this collection effort.
From June 3-17, all Save Mart and Lucky stores throughout the region will be collecting peanut butter to help stock the pantries of local food banks. Food banks and stores will be hosting events during the campaign’s duration.
Giving this campaign a boost, Jif peanut butter and Smucker’s jelly are holding a buy-one, get-one promotion, making it easier for families to donate a jar of peanut butter or jelly each time they purchase one.
“Save Mart knows that one in three kids in our community struggles with hunger. So they have stepped up to help Community Food Bank provide 100,000 kids with PB&J this summer through their ‘Peanut Butter with a Purpose’ campaign,” said Andrew Souza, president and CEO of the Community Food Bank, which serves Fresno, Madera, Kings, Tulare and Kern counties.
In the summer, many families are left struggling to stretch already limited food budgets even further with yet another gap to fill. With holiday donations nearly depleted, local food banks are most desperate for food during the summer months—right at the time that school children who receive school lunch head off for the summer. According to the USDA, more than one in five children live in a household that is food insecure. Peanut butter was chosen because it is a high protein, shelf-stable food often associated with children.
“Last year we were able to raise over 16 tons of peanut butter. That’s enough to make over half a million peanut butter sandwiches. That’s a lot of happy kids!” said Nicole Pesco, Save Mart co-president and chief strategy and branding officer. “I’m thrilled that Save Mart is able to contribute to our communities this way.”
Based in the heart of the Central Valley, Save Mart Supermarkets is committed to sourcing a wide variety of local products. The company employs more than 16,000 team members and operates 217 traditional and price impact stores under the banners of Save Mart, Lucky, FoodMaxx, S-Mart Foods, and Maxx Value Foods. In addition to its retail operation, Save Mart owns and operates two distribution centers, Smart Refrigerated Transport, Yosemite Wholesale Warehouse, and is a voting partner in Super Store Industries (SSI)—which owns and operates a distribution center in Lathrop, Mid Valley Dairy in Fairfield, and Sunnyside Farms ice cream plant in Turlock.
