Foods of the Month: Peanut Butter and Beans

Earlier this year, we profiled peanut butter and beans as part of our Food of the Month series.

Once again, we pull them into the spotlight to share the important role they play in providing a balanced diet for families and individuals we serve. In recent months, the prices for basic staples have risen by 57% for peanut butter and 17% for beans. These increased costs have forced the Food Bank to give out smaller portions to keep up with mounting food prices, but we don’t want to do that!

Why peanut butter and beans?

Peanut butter and beans are both shelf stable sources of protein and filled with an abundance of nutritious value. Protein is made up of amino acids that help people build and repair tissue. Some of the amino acids we need are sourced by foods we consume, which is why Second Harvest always has peanut butter and beans on our most-needed food items list.

How can you help?

NXP’s Second Harvest Champion Betty Steen, shows off some of the nuts of their efforts.

Hosting a targeted food drive to collect our foods of the month is valuable to our food pipeline. We have two local companies who created their own unique twists to encourage employee food drives that benefited Second Harvest Food Bank. Last year, NXP employees  held a peanut butter drive. They donated both jars and cash, collecting a total of 1,472 jars of peanut butter!

SanDisk made March peanut butter month and added a PB drive to their spring cleaning office furniture sale to help Second Harvest provide this protein-rich food for families in need.  In addition to hosting barrels to collect jars of peanut butter, they sold used office furniture for $5 apiece to allow Second Harvest to buy peanut butter and other much-needed foods. To double their impact, the SanDisk Community Sharing Fund matched all proceeds. The drive raised a total of $5,000 which allows us to buy 3,623 jars of peanut butter at current market prices!

Anyone can help Second Harvest Food provide nutrient rich meals by hosting a food drive to collect staples like peanut butter and beans. Your donations can be dropped off at any of our locations. Making an online donation also helps Second Harvest purchase more of these healthy basics for our clients. With your support, we can ensure peanut butter and beans reach the tables of those we serve.