Schnucks Meat Rescue Program Brings More Protein to Needy

For more than 30 years, Schnuck Markets has helped Operation Food Search (OFS) feed hungry residents of the St. Louis area by providing food donations as well as financial contributions.

Over this three-decade partnership, meat protein donations were rare due to food safety concerns. Thanks to a committed partnership between OFS and the Schnucks Food Safety team over the course of the past five years, “Meat Rescue” today is a daily reality. Initially piloted in two stores in 2010, meat recovery is now taking place in nearly every Schnucks location and has served as a model program to others.

These donations align with one of Schnucks’ highest community relations priorities: providing hunger relief to residents within the communities it serves. “We partner with key hunger relief organizations across our five-state area through our year-round, and often daily, donations of food,” said Joanie Taylor, Schnucks director of consumer affairs and community relations. “The Meat Rescue program is one of the first in the nation, and because of its success, it is now being replicated by hunger relief agencies and grocers across the county,” Taylor added.

In addition to daily donations of food, OFS benefited from more than $800,000 in proceeds from the Schnucks 75th Anniversary Gala in 2014. OFS used the funds to purchase a new refrigerated box truck and to increase the impact of its nutrition education outreach that assists low-income individuals in learning how to prepare healthy, affordable meals.

Founded in St. Louis in 1939, Schnuck Markets operates 98 stores in Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin and Iowa.