Smithfield Foods Donates $50,000 to Support Local Education

Donation to TeamMates Supports Crete, Nebraska, Area Students

SMITHFIELD, Va., May 3, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Smithfield Foods has made a $50,000 donation to TeamMates, a mentoring program serving third through 12th grade students in the Midwest. This investment, made through Smithfield's Crete, Nebraska, operation, will support local students with one-on-one mentoring to help them reach their full potential.

"Giving back to the communities in which Smithfield operates is one of our core values," said Steve Evans, vice president of community development for Smithfield Foods. "We have an important responsibility to support our communities, and we fulfill that responsibility through targeted philanthropy and employee volunteerism. TeamMates gives us an opportunity to have a meaningful impact in advancing the education of young people in Crete."

"Smithfield has been a great partner over the past dozen years," said Zoe White, program coordinator for TeamMates in Crete. "The financial support and volunteer mentors they provide are the backbone of the program, which has had a tremendous positive impact on the lives of the youth in our community each and every day."

This is the 12th year Smithfield has supported the program, in which company volunteer mentors work with students, assist with homework, explore interests and hobbies, and help identify talents. Since the launch of the company's partnership with TeamMates' Crete chapter in 2011, Smithfield has donated more than $600,000 to the program, and more than 200 students have participated.

Smithfield's contribution to TeamMates is part of the company's commitment to supporting education, one of its key philanthropic focus areas. Smithfield's Crete, Nebraska, facility employs more than 1,500 community members. For more information about Smithfield's commitment to its local communities, visit smithfieldfoods.com/helping-communities.

About Smithfield Foods, Inc.
Headquartered in Smithfield, Virginia, since 1936, Smithfield Foods, Inc. is a U.S. food company that employs nearly 60,000 people in seven countries and partners with thousands of American farmers. As one of the world's leading vertically integrated protein companies, we are dedicated to producing "Good food. Responsibly.^®" to feed a growing world population. We have pioneered sustainability standards for more than two decades, including our industry-leading commitments to become carbon negative in our U.S. company-owned operations and reduce GHG emissions 30% across our entire U.S. value chain by 2030. We believe in the power of protein to end food insecurity and have donated hundreds of millions of food servings to food banks, disaster relief efforts and community outreach programs in all 50 U.S. states. Smithfield boasts a portfolio of high-quality iconic brands, such as Smithfield^®, Eckrich^®, Gwaltney^® and Nathan's Famous^®, among many others. For more information, visit www.smithfieldfoods.com and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram. 

About TeamMates
The TeamMates Mentoring Program began in 1991 with the vision of University of Nebraska Head Football Coach Tom Osborne and his wife Nancy. TeamMates is a school-based, one-to-one mentoring program. The focus of the mentoring relationship is for an adult volunteer to help build a positive relationship with a student so as to help them reach their full potential. The program serves thousands of boys and girls across the Midwest with mentors from all walks of life. For more information, visit https://teammates.org/.

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SOURCE Smithfield Foods, Inc.