UPDATED: Dec. 18, 2020
This holiday season Dairy West’s Curds + Kindness Food Truck is back in action, making stops across Utah and Idaho. The tour, which began Dec. 1 in Utah, lauds the efforts of frontline healthcare workers and provides nutrient-rich foods for families in crisis and food-insecure youths.
This spring and summer the Dairy West Curds + Kindness Food Truck delivered 10,000 grilled-cheese sandwiches and bags of cheese curds to essential frontline workers who have kept Idaho and Utah communities going during the pandemic.
The broader Curds + Kindness initiative, which Dairy West launched in April to match surplus milk with processing capacity to create products for food-insecure populations, donated nearly 1 million pounds of butter, yogurt, and cheese through food banks and school districts across Idaho and Utah this spring and summer.
“Our healthcare system, shelters, and food banks are being taxed more than ever,” Jenny Nelson, Dairy West SVP of innovation partnerships, said. “Idaho and Utah dairy farm families want to extend their gratitude to essential frontline workers and help keep our neighbors in need nourished.”
The Curds and Kindness Holiday tour distributed:
- 5,700 caprese grilled-cheese sandwiches featuring local mozzarella, pesto, and tomatoes to frontline workers at 10 healthcare centers in Idaho and Utah.
- Nearly 4,000 dairy totes that include macaroni and cheese, hot chocolate, one quart of shelf-stable milk, and a coupon for free butter for Idaho and Utah youths.
- 370 pizzas and 1,770 pounds of cheese for 19 shelters in Idaho and Utah.
What is Curds + Kindness?
Curds + Kindness is a concept that Dairy West has proposed to help feed local communities and support dairy farmers. Put very simply, our aim is to save milk from being discarded and feed a growing number of hungry people.
How does the program work?
We have worked closely with our local dairy processing community to identified plants in the region who have capacity to take on additional milk or cream and package it for personal consumption (1-5lb increments of dairy products). Dairy West will be purchasing this product and working directly with Idaho and Utah Food Banks to distribute the product through their existing network of feeding sites.
Program Distribution
- Utah, Idaho & Las Vegas food banks existing distribution channels
- Select Local School district feeding sites
Curds + Kindness on the Road in June (Food Truck)
- In June, we will be wrapping a traditional-style food truck with Curds+ Kindness branding to deliver grilled cheese sandwiches, cheese curd and recipes to front line workers across the Utah, Idaho region. The truck will be making deliveries for 4 weeks in June as a celebration of the goodness of dairy during National Dairy Month and as a tribute to those who have kept our communities running through the pandemic.
Who is involved?
The list continues to grow! Currently local processing plants (dairy food manufacturers), retail chains, and allied industry partners are involved in this initiative.
Processors / Co-ops:
- Beehive Cheese – Curd
- Chobani - Yougrt
- Danone – yogurt (donating product for distribution)
- DFA - The Creamery – Curd
- Gossner Foods – Swiss Cheese
- Heber Valley Cheese – Curd (donating product for distribution)
- High Desert Milk – Butter
- Idaho Milk Products
- Innovative Food Solutions
- Lactalis American Group
- Glanbia
- Ballard Cheese
Allied Industry: |
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Logistics Partners: |
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How can I get involved?
Contact us? Here's who to reach out to:
Processor or Marketing - Kristi Spence
Food Bank / Retailer - Jenn Nelson
Allied Industry - Karianne Fallow
Where can I find the product?
- Utah, Idaho & Las Vegas food banks existing distribution channels
- Select Local School district feeding sites
Program Stats:
As of June 26th – 995,780 lbs of dairy products have been donated
- 448,010 lbs Swiss Cheese
- 8,000 lbs Cheese (other)
- 145,782 lbs Cheese Curd
- 129,600 lbs Butter
- 46,080 lbs Mozzarella Cheese
- 218,308 lbs Yogurt (94,288 – Dannon | 124,020 Chobani)
Food Truck Donations
- 10,125 Sandwiches
- 20,650 bags of cheese curd
