Emmy Award-Winning Hosts Rachael Ray and Tyra Banks Team Up to Launch 'If You Can ... We Can' to Help Supply Emergency Food to Hungry New Yorkers

Emmy Award-Winning Hosts Rachael Ray and Tyra Banks Team Up to Launch 'If You Can ... We Can' to Help Supply Emergency Food to Hungry New Yorkers

Boston Market and Del Monte Foods Inc. Join the Daytime Hosts in Providing Much Needed Food Donations To the City's Neediest

NEW YORK, Sept. 29 /PRNewswire/ -- As a response to the sluggish economy and the skyrocketing price of food, the New York based RACHAEL RAY and "The Tyra Banks Show" have joined forces to help the more than 1 million New Yorkers who access emergency food each year. Both shows are challenging their daily audience members to bring healthy canned goods to the tapings that will be donated to City Harvest, an organization that helps feed over 260,000 New Yorkers each week.

The goal of the "If You Can ... We Can" program is to collect more than 20,000 cans of food from audience members before the Thanksgiving holiday on November 27th. This supports one of the core work areas of Ray's nonprofit organization, Yum-o!, which is feeding hungry kids and raising awareness about the issue of hunger in America.

Helping surpass that goal are program partners Del Monte, which will make a donation to City Harvest of 50,000 canned goods and Boston Market, that has agreed to provide more than 8,000 pounds of fresh poultry to be used in New York City food pantries and soup kitchens.

"You can't turn on the news without seeing a story about how the economy is taking its toll on people and in this climate more and more are in need of food that they can no longer afford," says Rachael Ray, host of Emmy Award-winning RACHAEL RAY. "With the demand for emergency food increasing, these organizations have had to drastically reduce portion size or limit their operating hours -- they simply cannot accommodate the increased need. As television personalities, we have the ability to raise awareness about this issue and make a meaningful dent in this problem."

"New Yorkers are incredibly resilient and understand the importance of pooling their resources in order to do good for others," says Tyra Banks, host of the Emmy Award-winning "The Tyra Banks Show." "There are so many people who unfortunately can't always put food on the table for themselves or their loved ones. It's my hope that our efforts will bring about the necessary attention the ongoing issue of hunger in New York City deserves. By teaming up with Rachael's show, we have committed to making sure that this issue is getting the support that it needs. The need for emergency food is such a sad reality but collectively we can all help in a big way."

Since this problem is not limited to New York, both hosts will be announcing the "If You Can ... We Can" program on their shows and providing their viewers with information on how they can get involved in their own communities.

"With higher prices for food, fuel, and other necessities straining the budgets of so many families, this holiday season promises to be a tough one for increasing numbers of New Yorkers," said Jilly Stephens, Executive Director of City Harvest. "Donations of canned and nonperishable food from audiences of "RACHAEL RAY" and "The Tyra Banks Show" will go a long way in helping City Harvest feed our neighbors. Thank you to Rachael and Yum-o! for recognizing how important it is to be able to put a good meal on the table this holiday season and all year round."

For more information on how to get involved please visit http://www.yum-o.org/.

ABOUT RACHAEL RAY:

RACHAEL RAY, the Emmy Award-winning Outstanding Talk Show -- Entertainment, is distributed and produced by CBS Television Distribution in association with Harpo Productions, Scripps Networks and Watch Entertainment. Janet Annino is executive producer. CBS Television Distribution is a unit of CBS Corp.

ABOUT THE TYRA BANKS SHOW:

"The Tyra Banks Show" returns for its fourth season having just won a Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Talk Show -- Information and is produced by Bankable Productions in association with Telepictures Productions, an industry-leading and Emmy Award-winning producer of syndicated programming. The series is distributed by Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution, one of the leading distributors of first-run and off-network programming in the domestic television marketplace.

ABOUT CITY HARVEST:

Now serving New York City for over 25 years, City Harvest is the world's first food rescue organization, dedicated to feeding the city's hungry men, women and children. This year, City Harvest will collect more than 20 million pounds of excess food from all segments of the food industry, including restaurants, grocers, corporate cafeterias, manufacturers and farms. This food is then delivered free of charge to more than 600 community food programs throughout New York City using a fleet of trucks and bikes as well as volunteers on foot. Each week, City Harvest helps over 260,000 hungry New Yorkers find their next meal.

First Call Analyst:
FCMN Contact:

Source: RACHAEL RAY

CONTACT: Lauren Nowell, Director of Publicity of Rachael Ray,
+1-917-332-3156, Lauren.nowell@cbs.com

Web site: http://www.yum-o.org/

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Profile: International Entertainment