Families First Counseling Services, Webster County Upper Des Moines Opportunity, St. Paul Lutheran Church, and First Covenant Church received hams from NEW Cooperative this year.

Since 2018, NEW Cooperative has donated hams to local communities in its trade area by partnering with local food pantries to ensure that the appropriate population is reached to help ease food insecurity while making the holiday season more joyous for all recipients.

NEW Cooperative thanked Land O’ Lakes, a company that also understands the need for a nutritious holiday meal. With the assistance of their matching funds, NEW Cooperative was able to increase the number of hams distributed in 2024 to 4,500, equal to 24,678 pounds of Iowa grown pork.

The cooperative’s leadership also thanked the employees who assisted in the distribution and delivery of hams to more than 50 food pantries. Without their help, it would not have been possible to deliver hams to food pantries ranging from the Iowa Highway 9 corridor in northwest Iowa, southwest to Fremont County, to the Cainsville, Missouri area, and to the north along the Interstate 35 corridor.

“NEW Cooperative’s Hams for Hunger event has been a central part of our community-giving program for many years,” said Gary Moritz, NEW Cooperative communications director. “We hope this gesture will help make the holiday season more joyous for all recipients. From all of us at NEW Cooperative, we wish you a Merry Christmas and happy holidays.”