Tyson Foods: Using social media to mobilize communities

Here's a fantastic use case for the power of community to do amazing things.

Tyson Foods, the world's largest poultry company, is sponsoring a hunger relief initiative aimed at providing a source for all hunger and poverty-related data.

Yesterday, they put up a blog post challenging readers: they would donate 100 lbs. of food to the Capital Area Food Bank of Texas, up to a 35,000 lb. truckload.

In less than six hours, they'd filled the truck.

As of this writing, there are 535 comments on the post.

If you were anything like me, you'd think, "Hmm, would anyone actually read a poultry company blog?" And, if you were anything like me, you'd be humbled at being so completely off-base.

If you'd like to follow Tyson on Twitter, you can find them at @TysonFoods. And thanks to Mike Chapman for bringing this to our attention.

Comments

[Lisa Goddard]

@MikeChapman, @daveiam, @michellegreer, Ed from @TysonFoods and the many social media mavens in Austin, have been extraordinary in their efforts.

Thank you for spreading the word and helping hungry Central Texans.

- LisaG
Advocacy & Online Marketing Manager
Capital Area Food Bank of Texas

[Ed Nicholson]

Susan
Thanks so much for helping create awareness of hunger in Austin and the work of the CAFB. The work being done by CAFB is truly exemplary and inspiring. Kudos to the Austin social media community for making this event successful. Please support the HAMup Tweetup and volunteer at CAFB!