BALTIMORE, Md. — Workers at ITS Plant in South Baltimore will process 100 million pounds of chicken each year, and now, Holly Poultry is sending a semi-truck stacked full of meat south to help the victims of Hurricane Ian.
“We do business up and down the East Coast and have some really big customers in Florida,” said CEO Zach Fine. “And when we heard of the devastation that really came out of nowhere in the Fort Myers area, we said, ‘Hey, we have the number one resource in food and let’s jump in and help.’”
The shipment consists of 25,000 pounds of chicken, which is enough to feed 78,000 people, along with several pallets of drinking water.
The company has customers and some of its workers on the ground in Florida to help with the delivery.
“The bulk of product will go to Mercy Chefs and they are a faith-based organization,” said the company’s human resources director, Erin McGinnis, “and they have been serving over 20,000 meals a day to the community.”
In addition to this initial load, Holly Poultry and H&S Bakery in Baltimore are exploring a plan to send down a second shipment in the weeks to come.
It’s a mission of mercy recognizing each shipment could make a real difference for those devastated by the Category 4 hurricane.
“If everyone is willing or could pitch in any way whether it’s helping hands, or money, or a resource of food, or water, or supplies that are going to be needed, get Fort Myers and that area back up and running as soon as possible” said Fine, “so it’s going to take a little bit of effort from everyone around the country.”
