
Arkansas Foodbank CEO Rhonda Sanders and U.S. Sen. John Boozman fill bags with food for the Food For Kids program. Behind them is the new logo for the organization.
The Arkansas Foodbank and Arkansas Rice Depot on Wednesday celebrated the two organizations’ merger and revealed a new logo and mission statement, “United to Fight Hunger.”
“A merger is not easy work,” Foodbank CEO Rhonda Sanders said. “Now we can serve more people in need and do it better.”
The merger, which was announced in September and went into effect Jan. 1, brought together two nonprofits dedicated to serving hungry Arkansans through various programs reaching school-aged children, college students, families and seniors.
According to Jordan Johnson, chairman of the Arkansas Foodbank’s board, the two organizations put out a combined 25 million pounds of food last year. As one organization, he believes that number will grow.
“This has been a labor of love,” Johnson said. “We’re finding a better way to do what we do every day.”
Arkansas leads the nation with more than 26 percent of seniors facing food insecurity, and the state is ranked one of the worst in the country for child hunger, the organization said.
The combined organization will use the former Rice Depot building as the primary point for volunteer activities, food sorting and the Food For Kids backpack program. The Foodbank location will serve as the food distribution center to all its partner agencies.
Sanders said that in January and February alone, the organization distributed 3.2 million meals.
U.S. Sen. John Boozman, R-Ark., attended Wednesday’s event and called the merger a “tremendous” bipartisan effort to “work together for the greater good.”
Following the news conference, attendees took part in a brief service project, assisting to fill backpacks with kid-friendly, nourishing food for distribution.