BOISE, Idaho — Idaho letter carriers will hold their annual food drive on Saturday, May 8. Idahoans are encouraged to participate by placing non-perishable food, like canned soup, peanut butter, beans or rice, in a bag near their mailbox prior to mail delivery. Letter carriers will pick up the donations as they make their rounds. All of the food will be distributed to local food banks whose shelves are traditionally bare this time of year.

Last year Idaho residents donated more than 400,000 pounds of food – nationwide the drive delivered a record 73.4 million pounds in 2009. Postal employees in all 50 states will participate in the food drive, which since 1993 has resulted in delivery of nearly a billion pounds of donations to community food banks and pantries. The Letter Carriers’ Food Drive is the largest one-day food collection in the nation.

According to the Idaho Food Bank, more than 142,200 people in Idaho received emergency food last year. Food banks are notoriously empty during summer months, having exhausted the supply of donations received from food drives conducted during the holidays that are then distributed during spring. Summer donations are even more critical since many children in need no longer have the benefit of their school lunch program.

Some of the many Idaho Post Offices and letter carriers collecting food on their routes for those in need on May 8th include: Boise, Blackfoot, Burley, Caldwell, Coeur d’Alene, Emmett, Idaho Falls, Jerome, Lewiston, Malad City, Meridian, Mountain Home, Nampa, Pocatello, Rexburg, Sandpoint, St. Maries, Twin Falls and several other offices.

For more information about the food drive, ask your letter carrier, contact your Post Office or visit helpstampouthunger.com.