INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — On April 13 at an Indianapolis Kroger, the supermarket’s Central Division, Elanco and Rose Acre Farms made a joint announcement of the launch of HATCH, a program to provide eggs to central Indiana food banks.
"When you buy a dozen Kroger medium eggs, we’re going to make sure that one (more) egg goes to the food bank," Kroger Central Division President Jeff Burt said. "And that’s going to be a whole lot of eggs."
The program involves 66 central Indiana stores, he said. They will count the number of dozens of medium eggs sold through June 20. Each time the figure equals a shipping unit, that amount will be set aside at the Shelbyville, Ind., distribution center. The eggs will be donated to Gleaners Food Bank, Midwest Food Bank and Grace Care Center.
Representatives of Midwest Food Bank and Gleaners attended the announcement. Afterward, each organization received a pallet of eggs from Rose Acre Farms, a collective donation of 34,560 eggs, or 2,880 dozen.
"This is a great day for the food-insecure in Indiana," said John Whitaker, executive director of Midwest Food Bank’s Indianapolis division. "With Kroger collecting data through their egg sales and transferring that information to Rose Acre Farms via Elanco, we will be able to add a sustainable food source for those in need in our community."
"One in six Hoosiers across our state and in our region are food-insecure," explained Gleaners CEO Cynthia Hubert. "They don’t know where their next meal is going to come from."
She noted that includes one in four children. Gleaners serves a 21-county area, including Indianapolis and extending eastward to Richmond and southward almost to Louisville, Ky.
"Eggs are such a great protein for people and such an easy thing for people to connect with. The people that we serve, their families, they want that source of protein."
All speakers extolled the nutritional benefits of eggs, especially as a solution to hunger and malnutrition. "When you look for a source of high-quality protein at a low cost, that for the dollar spent you get the highest protein, eggs are at the top of that list," said Amanda Jackson, director of sales for Rose Acre Farms.
"That makes eggs the sustainable choice for donating to food banks, so they can keep a consistent supply of protein. Each egg contains 6 grams of protein, but also all the nine essential amino acids that our body needs. It contains 13 vitamins and minerals, and 60 calories for a medium egg."
Rose Acre Farms, which supplies the Kroger-branded eggs, originated in southern Indiana and is now the second-largest egg producer in the United States, with facilities throughout Indiana and several other states.
A medium egg is about 1.75 ounces, compared to 2 ounces for a large, Jackson said.
The size difference only becomes an issue with recipes calling for four or more large eggs, she said, noting consumers can visit the American Egg Board site at http://incredibleegg.org for size and weight conversion information.
The HATCH program originated with Elanco, the animal health division of Eli Lilly and Co., headquartered just east of Indianapolis in Greenfield.
"As a company, we’re in the business of feeding people," Mitch Davis of Elanco said. "Chicken nutrition is important to us, beef; any animal that’s in the food chain we’re very involved with. And ultimately, we are thinking of ways to engage our food banks. We work diligently in central Indiana and around the world on food security, on solutions for foods that are sustainable.
"We got excited about this, because we knew how eggs impact lives – we are on the boards and we’re engaged in food security and hunger in Indiana. With these food banks, we were looking for a solution that could get a consistent protein to families and to kids. And this is what we came up with.
"We felt that it needed to be a partnership," he added. "It needed to be between the food banks and the consumer and the company and the retailer. Because everyone is working together, it’s much more likely to succeed long-term and create a sustainable supply."
At the end of the pilot program in June, the partner organizations and businesses will examine its effectiveness, Davis said. It is hoped HATCH will then be renewed and expanded, eventually nationwide.
"This is an innovative way to actually give protein to people who really need it," Burt said, adding that Kroger is already heavily involved with food banks in Indiana. "(Kroger has) been serving the hungry for 132 years."
"I believe we are going to open a new opportunity today that’s never been done," said Elanco President Jeff Simmons.
"We’re going to combine a key bunch of companies that are linked into the supply chain to get more of what I think could be one of the best proteins, one of the best food sources, to more families in Indianapolis – done by companies here in Indiana.
"By doing that, we’re going to change diets; we’re going to change mornings for mothers; we’re going to change breakfasts; and that’s going to change education. It’s going to change cognitive skills in kids; it’s going to change grades; and it’s going to change the trajectory of lives," he added.
The program also launched a website, www.hatchforhunger.com
