Mayra Cruz

Pioneering innovative ways to address hunger by creating high quality, nutritious foods.

CHICAGO, IL. – February 28, 2022 – Nonprofit Bigger Table and eight companies throughout Chicagoland joined forces to fight food insecurity with the creation of high-fiber, high-protein almond chocolate bars. Working closely with food banks and pantries, Bigger Table develops, creates, and provides new, nutrient-rich foods to address specific needs of community partners.

“We’re grateful to partner with Bigger Table and receive these nutritious protein bars. Donated, high quality protein has been especially hard to come by during the pandemic, and our network is always looking to fill that need for our neighbors,” says Liz Gentile, Director of Food Procurement at Northern Illinois Food Bank. “Our thanks to Bigger Table for stepping up for our community.”

Bigger Table identifies opportunities within the food and beverage industry for innovative philanthropic work. Bigger Table creates new ways to donate consumer-ready product where and when it is needed most. Distribution of the 73,000 bars will go to five Chicagoland partner organizations dedicated to reducing food insecurity in their community: Northern Illinois Food Bank, Blessings in a Backpack, Fight to Feed, Humans for Hope, and Aurora Interfaith Food Pantry.

“I’m just happy Bigger Table exists. It is answering a need that no one else is. They are collaborating not only with these local manufacturers, but also food pantries. It is just an awesome thing,” said Shannon Cameron, Executive Director of the Aurora Interfaith Food Pantry.

All protein bar ingredients, time, and labor were in-kind contributions donated by local companies that are part of Chicagoland’s food & beverage eco-system: ADM, Blommer Chocolate, Coyle Print Group, Glanbia Nutritionals, GlobalTranz, Imbibe, National Foodworks Services, ofi Cocoa, and ofi Edible Nuts. The tasty, nutrient-rich, no added sugar bars contain 18g of protein and 10g of fiber per serving.  The delicious chocolate bar satisfies both taste and nutritional needs.

“Glanbia Nutritionals was pleased to partner with Bigger Table and the Chicagoland Food and Beverage Network on this effort and donate healthy ingredients for the protein bars,” said Wilf Costello, Chief Marketing Officer of Glanbia Nutritionals. “Delivering better nutrition for every step of life’s journey is our mission and supporting food banks and groups such as Blessings in a Backpack when they are facing such an increased need, really brings that mission to life.”

ABOUT BIGGER TABLE: Bigger Table is a nonprofit (501c3) organization founded by the Chicagoland Food and Beverage Network. Bigger Table aims to bring together the area’s food & beverage industry to collaborate and deliver on a series of charitable and economic growth initiatives. By working together, Bigger Table believes it can work more effectively, have a bigger impact on the community, and better engage employees and the communities it serves. For more information about Bigger Table, please visit biggertable.org.

“Together, let’s apply our passion for food to create positive impact in our communities, especially for those hurting from the pandemic and natural events like the wildfires out West.”

Each day, C.A. Fortune and its client partners work hard to get innovative, good-for-you products into the hands of consumers across the country. Your success has been their success, and they could not be more grateful. This quarter, to pass along the gratitude, C.A. Fortune will focus energy on those experiencing hunger within our communities.

The C.A. 5K Giving Day is a virtual fundraiser aimed at getting members of the C.A. Fortune team, including families, friends, and clients, active in an effort to raise funds for Feeding America* — all while having fun! All are invited to participate in the virtual 5K. 

Thank you for helping express a bit of gratitude during these uneasy times. Follow the action and impact of their efforts on C.A. Fortune social media accounts or by searching for #CA5KGivingDay!

For more details, to register for the 5K and to donate, click here.

Robin Seaton JeffersonFormer ContributorRetirement

The Greek physician and father of medicine said it best. “Let food be thy medicine, thy medicine shall be thy food.”

There’s a reason he’s called the father of medicine. Hippocrates somehow knew over 2,000 years ago that illness had a physical and a rational explanation and that what we put into our bodies has huge implications for what we get out of them. Twenty-first century research is proving Hippocrates was right on the money.

Enter Ashley Tyrner of Farmbox Direct and now FarmboxRX. Tyrner has penned an unprecedented deal with Vibra Health of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania—the first insurance company to offer healthy fruit and vegetable boxes to its members, with an initial focus on seniors. In fact, the company is so sure that eating right can affect health outcomes, that they’re doing it for their Medicare Advantage members for free.

Through the FarmboxRX pilot program, Tyrner said she hopes to help revolutionize healthcare through healthy eating.

The daughter of an Illinois soy bean farmer who took an unintended and somewhat fortuitous route to New York City, Tyrner said she grew up with a love of agriculture. But it was being pregnant and on food stamps in California that led her to head to the other side of the country where she had dreamed of living and working since her girlhood.

Tyrner ended up moving into a four-flight walk-up in New York City with a three-month-old baby in tow. Initially she took a job in fashion. But her agricultural roots began to pull at her, when she realized that some 700,000 people in New York City and the Bronx live in a “food desert.” And she thought that if people could get coffee delivered to them in the middle of the night in the Big Apple, why not good food? (The USDA defines food deserts as parts of the country vapid of fresh fruit, vegetables and other healthful whole foods.)

Read more, here.

The annual Global Food Safety Training Survey is an industry benchmarking tool for companies to assess their food safety training programs compared to their industry peers. Download this complimentary report to gain insights from dozens of data points with insightful analysis. Utilize these findings and best practices to gain the support and resources needed in your organization to meet our industry’s evolving training needs.

To download the full report, click here.

Also find “The Research Uncovers Positive Trends & Areas of Concern.”