Raleigh, NC - A chartered 747 jet
full of emergency relief commodities left Los Angeles headed to Iran today.
Aboard are over a million servings of high protein, dehydrated soup mix
donated by Stop Hunger Now.
An international hunger relief organization
based in Raleigh, NC, Stop Hunger Now began providing food relief for the
earthquake victims in the region of Bam, Iran only days after the disaster.
Working through Food for the Hungry, International, one of its strategic
partners, funds for direct food relief were immediately sent to the affected
region. Today's shipment of soup mix is a continuation of its relief efforts
in the area.
The Rev. Ray Buchanan, President of Stop Hunger Now, said that his organization responded immediately by providing funds for the purchase of emergency food supplies for the victims because the need was critical. Today, working in partnership with several other Christian relief organizations, Stop Hunger Now is providing approximately 40,000 pounds of dehydrated, high-protein soup mix to assist in the continued feeding of earthquake victims. The high protein soup mix, one Buchanan originally helped to develop, costs about 3.5 cents a serving.
The soup mix, purchased from the Breedlove Dehydration Plant in Lubbock, TX was trucked to Los Angeles, CA where it became part of an emergency airlift of relief supplies for the people of Iran devastated by the earthquake. The soup from Stop Hunger Now will help provide food relief for months, and is part of the international community's continuing crisis relief efforts in Iran.
Food for the Hungry, based in Scottsdale, AZ is handling the logistics. Their international staff, which has been in Bam since the day after the earthquake, will coordinate the food distribution through several Iranian relief organizations to ensure the food reaches those in most desperate need.
According to Buchanan, in most crisis situations such as this current one in Iran, the need for food is both immediate and intense. However, he quickly adds that even a small contribution can make a huge difference. A gift of $25 can provide enough rice to feed an entire family for a month.
Besides the current efforts in Iran, Stop Hunger Now is currently working in Afghanistan, Iraq, Malawi, Zambia, Haiti, Russia, Liberia and Guinea. In the past six years the Raleigh-based organization has provided over $30 million in food and emergency relief in over 49 countries.
For more information on the needs of the earthquake victims in Iran, or other hunger crisis areas around the world, Stop Hunger Now can be contacted at their toll-free phone number, 888/501-8440 or their website, www.stophungernow.org.
Headquartered in Raleigh, NC, Stop Hunger Now is a 501 ( c) (3) non-profit international relief organization that coordinates the distribution of food and other life-saving aid to people throughout the world.
For more information, photos and/or press kits contact:
Stop Hunger Now
2501 Clark Avenue, Suite 301
Raleigh, NC 27607-7213
office: 919.839.0689
toll-free: 888.501.8440
e-mail: communications@stophungernow.org