Two pigs purchased from Washakie County 4-H members for Wyoming Hunger Initiative's Fair to Fork program in 2nd year

First Lady Jennie Gordon's Wyoming Hunger Initiative launched in October 2019 with a specific goal in mind: to do whatever possible to support anti-hunger organizations working tirelessly throughout the state.

While this goal hasn't changed, the scope of Wyoming Hunger Initiative has grown in ways no one could have imagined. Wyoming Hunger Initiative recognizes that where there's a hungry child, a hungry family, senior, or veteran isn't far away, and thus works to prevent food insecurity by increasing awareness and support for the work of local anti-hunger organizations statewide through innovative programs that connect like-minded organizations as well as funding support for local solutions.

Food from the Farm + Ranch is one program under the Wyoming Hunger Initiative banner; it focuses on two areas: providing high-quality, locally-grown protein to food pantries throughout Wyoming, as well as making fresh, locally-grown produce available to those in need. Since the launch of Food from the Farm + Ranch, over 72,000 pounds of Wyoming-raised beef, pork, and lamb have been donated by Wyoming ranchers and other community purchasers through local county fair livestock sales. This generosity has made the program's vision a reality for scores of families; it's truly a Wyoming solution to a Wyoming challenge. 

FAIR TO FORK

In 2022 in partnership with Wyoming 4-H and FFA, Wyoming Hunger Initiative launched a new program under the Food from the Farm + Ranch banner called Fair to Fork. Thanks to a grant from the Hughes Charitable Foundation, Wyoming Hunger Initiative was able to purchase 14 hogs, have them processed, and distribute them locally as another avenue of providing protein in local communities in its inaugural year.

The program was designed to purchase one secondary hog from every county in Wyoming this year through a lottery selection to support youth development and bring fresh protein back into every county across the state. Hogs sold at the county livestock sale were not eligible for participation. Each member was paid market value for their hog, processing was paid for by Wyoming Hunger Initiative, and the protein was distributed in many cases by the youth themselves in collaboration with Wyoming Hunger Initiative.

This year, 2023, 22 hogs have been purchased in 18 counties. Since not all 23 counties participated, we let some counties double up out of the lottery system. This year Washakie County had two 4-H members have hogs selected for the program. Burgess Hamilton donated his hog to Washakie County School District No. 1 to help families in the district. Owen Lungren donated his to the Worland Food Pantry.

Fresh food and sources of high-quality protein are notoriously expensive and difficult to procure for the food bank system. As a producer herself, the first lady's vision for Wyoming Hunger Initiative was to encompass a component of agriculture that would be part of the solution to food insecurity in our state.

The ultimate goal of Food from the Farm + Ranch is to utilize Wyoming products to combat food insecurity. This collaboration exemplifies the partnership between related industries committed to using Wyoming products to care for Wyoming people. This program is made possible due to a partnership between Wyoming Hunger Initiative, University of Wyoming Extension, the Wyoming FFA Association, and the Hughes Charitable Foundation.