Fill the Freezer

Livestock sales are a pinnacle moment at county fairs, bringing community together to support and celebrate local 4-H and FFA youth. In Noble County, this summer ritual will also bring community together to support neighbors facing food insecurity.

On Saturday, Sept. 5, the Noble County Community Foundation will hold its first Fill the Freezer campaign. The campaign invites buyers at the 2026 Noble County Junior Fair Livestock Sale to donate their hog purchases to fill the freezers of the county’s food pantries and others to donate money to cover meat processing costs. The goal? To fight hunger in Noble County – one pig at a time.

Meeting a local need

The Fill the Freezer campaign is being held in partnership with the Noble County Fair Board, local 4-H and FFA members, meat processors and Mid-Ohio Food Collective, which will store and distribute the donated meat to Noble County food pantries.

The locally raised meat donated through Fill the Freezer will not only help individuals and families in Noble County, where more than 16 percent of the population experiences food insecurity*, but also the food pantries that serve them by providing high-quality protein. Meat is among the most expensive grocery items, making it often unaffordable for both families living on lower incomes and food pantries.

* Source: Feeding America

Learn more

For more information about the Noble County Fill the Freezer campaign, email Noble@ffao.org or call 740.753.1111.

Filling the freezers of food pantries across the region

Noble County is one of the latest to join Fill the Freezer efforts across Appalachian Ohio. This year, more than 10 of the Foundation for Appalachian Ohio’s affiliate foundation partners are spearheading or supporting Fill the Freezer, which was piloted in the region in 2021 by the Community Foundation for Perry County. In 2025 alone, more than 33,000 pounds of meat were donated through these programs.