Culver’s Thanks American Farm Families In More Than 220,735 Ways
Restaurant’s “Thank You, Farmers” raises awareness and funds for the future of farming
PRAIRIE DU SAC, Wis. – November 7, 2013 –When Culver’s launched its “Thank You, Farmers” initiative this summer, the goals were simple; thank the family farmers who have made Culver’s what it is today and provide financial support to those young people wanting to pursue farming as a career.
Since July, Culver’s has raised $220,735 for the National FFA Organization, local FFA Chapters and farm families across the country. The donation combines the efforts of Culver’s Franchising System and nearly 500 participating restaurants. This donation amount is preliminary and will only continue to climb as individual restaurants announce their local chapter donations in the coming weeks.
“We’re thrilled with the support our guests have offered for Thank You, Farmers,” said Craig Culver, CEO and co-founder of Culver’s. “Coming from a place connected to the farms that produce the dairy and grow the food that’s made the restaurant what it is, celebrating and supporting farmers just feels right.”
“Thank You, Farmers” kicked off with increased education around farmers and where food comes from, as well as opportunities to provide monetary support to future farmers. Participating Culver’s restaurants across the nation pledged their support to farm families through percent of sales nights, a Scoopie Token and guest donation program and event sponsorships – all benefitting local chapters of the National FFA Organization.
Culver’s also launched an online donation campaign on the Culvers.com homepage, as well as a Facebook promotion that contributed to the cause. The Facebook promotion allowed fans to write a brief thank you note to a farmer – with each thank you note resulting in a $1 donation made to the National FFA Organization on behalf of Culver’s. In total, Culver’s is donating $50,000 to the National FFA Organization while local restaurants are donating individually raised funds to their local chapters. The total donation made to local chapters across the country is over $170,000.
“We’re excited with the results of our program in just the first few months,” said David Stidham, vice president of marketing at Culver’s. “In 2014, we plan to support other organizations in addition to the National FFA Organization who understand the importance of recognizing the farmers who work so hard to provide us the great food we serve. This includes 4-H, middle and high school agriculture programs and others.”
CONTACTS:
Paul Pitas Kate Flehmer
608.644.2614 608.256.6357
paulpitas@culvers.com abroderick@hiebing.com
About Culver’s:
Culver’s serves fresh food, always cooked to order, with genuine family values, to each and every guest. Culver’s is an expanding franchise system with nearly 500 independently owned and operated restaurants in 21 states. The restaurants’ award-winning customer service is based on small-town, Midwestern values, genuine friendliness and an unwavering commitment to quality and freshness. Signature items include the ButterBurger®, made from fresh, never frozen Midwest-raised beef, and Fresh Frozen Custard, including the famous Flavor of the Day program. For more information, visit http://www.culvers.com, http://www.culvers.com/facebook, http://www.twitter.com/culvers, http://www.gplus.to/culvers or http://www.instagram.com/culvers.
About National FFA Foundation
The National FFA Foundation builds partnerships with industry, education, government, other foundations and individuals to secure financial resources that recognize FFA member achievements, develop student leaders and support the future of agriculture education. Governed by a 19-member board of trustees comprised of educators, business leaders, individual donors and FFA alumni, the foundation is a separately-registered nonprofit organization. About 82 percent of all sponsorship dollars received by the foundation support FFA members and agricultural education opportunities. For more, visit the National FFA Foundation at http://www.FFA.org/Give.
About National FFA Organization
The National FFA Organization is a national youth organization of 557,318 student members as part of 7,498 local FFA chapters in all 50 states, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. The FFA mission is to make a positive difference in the lives of students by developing their potential for premier leadership, personal growth and career success through agricultural education. The National FFA Organization operates under a federal charter granted by the 81st United States Congress and it is an integral part of public instruction in agriculture. The U.S. Department of Education provides leadership and helps set direction for FFA as a service to state and local agricultural education programs. For more, visit the National FFA Organization online at www.FFA.org, on Facebook, Twitter and the official National FFA Organization blog.
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