GOYA FOODS DONATES 75,000 POUNDS OF FOOD IN WASHINGTON REGION THROUGH UNITED WAY NCA

July 29,2011

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Julie Rosenthal
March 10, 2011 202-486-3059

GOYA FOODS DONATES 75,000 POUNDS OF FOOD IN WASHINGTON REGION
THROUGH UNITED WAY OF THE NATIONAL CAPITAL AREA

Local Donation Is Part of One Million Pounds of Food the Company Will Distribute Across the Country

WHAT: United Way of the National Capital Area (United Way NCA) will distribute 75,000 pounds of donated Goya Foods to 12 local food pantries that serve the residents of the Washington Region. The Capital Area Food Bank is the main distribution site for the donation.

During the event, an executive chef from Food & Friends will be demonstrating how to create low-cost, healthy, nutritious meals from the
donated Goya products.

    The local donation is part of Goya Foods’, the leading Hispanic-owned company in the United States, national distribution of one million pounds of food across the country in conjunction with United Way.

    These 12 receiving United Way NCA members represent the more than 40 food distribution organizations that United Way NCA serves each year. Last year, United Way NCA contributed more than $3.1 million dollars to these nonprofits who are focused on fighting hunger in the region.

As the largest single day donation by a food company, this contribution will help feed more than 3 million people nationwide.

WHERE:    Capital Area Food Bank
    645 Taylor Street, NE
    Washington, DC 20017

WHEN:    11 am- Cooking Demonstration
    11:30 am- Remarks
    12 pm- Photo ops/Interviews

WHO: Bill Hanbury, President and CEO, United Way of the National Capital Area

Luis Ramos, General Manager, Goya Virginia

Lynn Brantley, President and CEO of Capital Area Food Bank

Mark Locraft, Executive Chef, Food & Friends

Representatives from Donation Recipients:

•    Arlington Food Assistance Center (Arlington)
•    Bread for the City, Inc. (DC)
•    Capital Area Food Bank (Region)
•    Children of Mine (DC)
•    DC Central Kitchen, Inc. (DC)
•    Food & Friends (Region)
•    Food for Others (Fairfax)
•    Help for Others (Loudoun)
•    Manna Food Center (Montgomery)
•    Martha’s Table (DC)
•    Montgomery County Family Center of Catholic Charities (Montgomery)
•    SERVE - No. VA. Family Services (Prince William)
•    Spanish Catholic Center (DC)

PHOTO OPS/
INTERVIEWS:
•    Donated Goya food being loaded on recipient agency trucks
•    Healthy cooking demonstration featuring donated Goya products
•    Interviews with officials from United Way NCA, Goya and Capital Area Food Bank

BACKGROUND:

    About Goya

Throughout its history, Goya has donated extensively to local and national organizations as well as disaster recovery efforts around the world, including providing aid to the victims of the Haiti and Chile earthquakes. In 2010 alone, the company donated more than 1.5 million pounds in the U.S. The March 16th donation will take place on the 75th day of the year during the company’s 75th anniversary milestone year.

Additionally, Goya and the United Way are launching the Goya Gives campaign, a 75 day long effort to enable the public to make their own contribution to fighting hunger and promoting good nutrition through various social media platforms. Participants will be able to engage in Goya Gives by uploading their own low-cost recipes using Goya products, sharing stories and photos of how they have shared a meal with those in need, donating their Facebook status and Twitter tweets to the cause, and by making monetary donations to United Way to help fund the organization’s initiatives to prevent hunger and improve nutrition in communities across America.

    For more information on Goya Gives, please visit www.GoyaGives.org.

    About United Way NCA

United Way of the National Capital Area is the largest and most enduring social change organization in the Washington Metropolitan Area. We create connections that make a difference, linking donor dollars to worthy causes, companies to community, and neighbors-in-need to vital services. Focusing on the critical areas of Education, Income and Health – the building blocks of a good quality of
life – United Way of the National Capital Area not only provides immediate relief of problems affecting area residents, but also works to alleviate the underlying causes. Understanding the interconnectedness of community, we work in collaboration with our member charities, government, area businesses, and community leaders in order to improve lives throughout the region. For more information, visit www.unitedwaynca.org.

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Did You Know

The Capital Area Food Bank reports more than 641,000 residents of the Washington region are experiencing or at risk of hunger, including more than 100,000 in Fairfax County alone.

Residents in Ward 8 have to travel far to gain access to a public library. This distance can make it hard for residents to continue to succeed in their education.

Residents in Ward 7 have to travel far to gain access to a public library. This distance can make it hard for residents to continue to succeed in their education.

Residents in Ward 5 have to travel far to gain access to a public library. This distance can make it hard for residents to continue to succeed in their education.

In Ward 8, over 40% of single-family home and condominium sales resulted from foreclosure completions or owners selling under distress.

45.0% of residents living in Ward 8 receive food stamps.

In Ward 7, over 40% of single-family home and condominium sales resulted from foreclosure completions or owners selling under distress.

35.0% of residents living in Ward 7 receive food stamps.

5.0% of residents living in Ward 2 receive food stamps.

9.8% of residents in Ward 4 are unemployed.

3.2% of residents in Ward 3 are unemployed.

6.0% of residents in Ward 2 are unemployed.

In Ward 1, over 40% of single-family home and condominium sales resulted from foreclosure completions or owners selling under distress.

12.0% of people living in Ward 1 receive food stamps.

6.0% of people live below the poverty level in Prince William County.

9.4% of students in Prince William County drop out of high school.

More than 130,000 residents in Prince William County do not have health insurance.

8.9% of students in Montgomery County do not graduate high school.

In Montgomery County, 1 in 6 children under 18 is at risk of hunger.

6.7% of people live below the poverty level in Montgomery County.

13.9% of students in Prince George's County do not graduate high school.

7.8% of people live below the poverty level in Prince George’s County.

In Prince George's County, approximately 1 in 4 children under 18 is at risk of hunger.

30,000 children in Northern Virginia live in poverty.

In Northern Virginia, 1 in 6 children under 18 is at risk of hunger.

In seven out of the eight wards in the city, residents are closer to fast food restaurants than large grocery stores, which could have a negative impact on residents’ health.

17.2% of residents in the District of Columbia live below the poverty level.

19.0% of residents in the District of Columbia receive food stamps.

11.9% of residents in the District of Columbia are unemployed.

22.0% of students in the District of Columbia do not graduate high school.

32% of children live below the poverty level in the District of Columbia.

In the District of Columbia, nearly 1 in 2 children under 18 is at the risk of hunger.

12.5% of residents living in Maryland do not graduate high school.

9.2% of people live below the poverty level in Maryland.

Last year 2-1-1 Maryland answered 240,000 calls around basic needs such as food, shelter, eviction prevention and financial assistance for prescriptions

Ward 8 public schools have the lowest average share of students testing at required standards, only 33% in reading and 32% in math.

Over 28% of residents living in Ward 8 are unemployed.

Nearly 20% of people living in Ward 7 are unemployed.

67% of children living in Ward 6 are below the poverty level.

15.8% of people living in Ward 5 are unemployed.

There are more than 40,000 uninsured residents living in Loudoun County.

6.1% of students living in Loudoun County drop out of high school.

Nearly 8,000 people in Loudoun County live on an income of $20,000 to support a family of four.

10.6% of people in Fairfax County do not have health insurance.

5.6% of people live below the poverty level in Fairfax County.

7.9% of students living in Fairfax County drop out of high school.

10.5% of children in Arlington County live below the poverty level.

9.4% of students in Arlington County drop out of high school.

More than 3,000 people in Northern Virginia are homeless, 10% of these live in Alexandria, Virginia.

In the past year, 2-1-1 has answered approximately 632,000 calls from the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia from residents seeking services.

Last year 2-1-1 Maryland answered 240,000 calls around basic needs such as food, shelter, eviction prevention and financial assistance for prescriptions.

In Northern Virginia, 1 in 6 children under 18 is at risk of hunger.

In Prince George's County, approximately 1 in 4 children under 18 is at risk of hunger.

In Montgomery County, 1 in 6 children under 18 is at risk of hunger.

In the District of Columbia, nearly 1 in 2 children under 18 is at the risk of hunger.

Kids who attend a high quality preschool are more likely to graduate from high school and have higher lifetime earnings.

Every $1 invested in high quality early childhood education saves taxpayers $7.

Upon entering first grade, the average middle-class child has spent 1,000 to 1,700 hours of reading time with picture books; a low-income child averages just 25 hours.

Food stamps last an average of 2 1/2 weeks.

By age three, middle-class children have a vocabulary of about 1,100 words compared to 525 words for low-income children.

According to the Partnership for America's Economic Success, if 50 first graders enter school with reading problems, 44 of them will still have difficulties reading in the fourth grade.

The 2009/2010 official federal poverty level for a family of four is an annual household income of $22,050. 185% of poverty is $40,792, a level at which people still struggle with hunger.

The Rand Corporation states that 90% of a person's brain growth happens before the age of 3.

More than 130,000 residents in Prince William County do not have health insurance.

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