Those who know me well know how excited I am for the Indiana State Fair, which runs August 1 – 17 just a few miles away from my home. The fair train runs through the parking lot at my work, giving me a reminder multiple times a day of why I enjoy August so much.
Growing up in Terre Haute, my family went to the Vigo County Fair, a smaller yet similar experience with food, games, local vendors and the general people watching. While it was prevalent in Terre Haute, Indianapolis’ larger population makes it impossible to ignore. Walk through your local Kroger or WalMart and you can see who is and who isn’t.
What am I talking about? Hunger.
People are hungry more often than you might think. It’s not as simple as going to the store and buying the food you want. For some people, it is about making ends meet through the SNAP program, WIC or just paycheck to paycheck, making difficult decisions on what they can and cannot afford to purchase.
I cannot say I know what it is like. I cannot say I have been there. I grew up with two parents who were employed full-time, made great financial decisions and provided my sister and I with foods that were ordered from co-ops and picked up at a friend’s house since they were not available in town. I remember my mom bringing home cases of soy milk, organic grains and beans, vegan/vegetarian meat substitutes like tofu and things that are only just now becoming mainstream. And today, I’m fortunate enough to have a full-time job and the ability to purchase the food I need to not be hungry.
What I CAN say is that the rising cost of food is taking a toll on everyone. As I listen to NBC Nightly News tonight, I hear that beef prices alone rose 51% since last year.
How do I make a difference? For the past two years I have participated in the United States Postal Service Stamp Out Hunger drive, I’ve donated my lunch to South Africa, and I’ve tried to feed my family with $4 a day. This year I am taking it one step further by purchasing my meals at one of the three Indiana Pork tents at the Indiana State Fair.
This year Indiana Pork has teamed up with the Indiana State Department of Agriculture to help fight hunger in Indiana. For every entrée that a customer decides to “make a meal,” Indiana pork will donate one ground pork meal to food banks across the state. ISDA has helped fund this promotion through their Livestock Promotion Grant Award program.
The goal? Sell 30,000 meals which will result in the donation of 7,500 pounds of pork to Indiana food banks.
Now THAT is pulled pork for a good cause.
Indiana Pork will be featuring their famous pork burgers, pork chops, pulled pork BBQ, garbage burger (pulled pork ON TOP OF a pork burger) and the boneless pork chop at all of the three tents at the Indiana State Fair. You can make it meal by including chips, applesauce and a drink to your order. Last year I enjoyed a pork burger, fried potatoes and applesauce while John devoured the garbage burger, of course. JUST LOOK AT THIS AWESOMENESS.
Thanks to Indiana Pork, I am offering a family pack of four tickets to the Indiana State Fair AND four pork tent meal tickets to one lucky SGE reader. All you have to do is enter via the Rafflecopter below and tell me what you will order at the pork tent! The giveaway ends Tuesday, August 5.
The post Fighting Hunger with Indiana Pork + Giveaway (Sponsored) appeared first on Solid Gold Eats.
