GREELEY, Colo. — JBS USA and Pilgrim’s have announced the “Your Shot at Free Meat for a Year” program to encourage the vaccination of Americans in the rural communities where the company operates.
In partnership with local health authorities, the company will sponsor a series of free vaccination clinics and vaccine promotion events across more than 40 JBS USA and Pilgrim’s communities in the coming weeks. During the events, at least one newly vaccinated participant per location will be eligible to win free, poultry, beef and pork to feed a family of four for the next year. The company will also donate more than 1 million pounds of free poultry, beef and pork to support local communities hosting vaccine clinics.
“Since the onset of the pandemic, JBS USA and Pilgrim’s have been focused on protecting our team members and supporting our communities,” said Andre Nogueira, JBS USA CEO. “Most recently, our focus has been on providing the free opportunity of vaccination to our U.S. team members as a way of helping bring an end to the pandemic. We’ve made great progress, and our vaccination rates are much higher than the rates in the communities that we call home. The JBS USA and Pilgrim’s ‘Your Shot at Free Meat for a Year’ sweepstakes is our way of encouraging our fellow rural community members to join the fight against COVID-19 through vaccination.”
JBS USA and Pilgrim’s have promoted vaccination among their workforce of more than 66,000 employees with great success. The company’s vaccination program includes onsite clinics, paid time off, a $100 incentive bonus and a multi-lingual education campaign. As a result of these efforts, the company notes nearly 70 percent of its U.S. workforce has been fully vaccinated compared with a vaccination rate of only 46 percent for the U.S. population. Unfortunately, the vaccination rate of team members at many of its rural facilities exceeds the average rate of vaccination in the surrounding community by more than two to three times. The company wants to help change this dynamic and raise local community vaccination rates to help safeguard its hometowns across the country.
Any unvaccinated person 21 years of age or older who attends a JBS USA or Pilgrim’s-sponsored vaccination clinic or promotional event and receives their first COVID-19 vaccination has the chance to receive free poultry, beef and pork for their family for the next year courtesy of JBS USA and Pilgrim’s. Company-sponsored clinics will take place until to Aug. 31, 2021. During the events, 50 people will be randomly selected as sweepstakes winners.
The first round of clinics took place in Greeley, Colo., during the Greely Stampede, a community festival that attracts more than 250,000 people annually. In partnership with Banner Health, anyone who received their first vaccine at the event was eligible to win free meat for a year.
Nearly 80 percent of JBS Greeley team members have been vaccinated, the company adds.
“To give us a real shot at building back stronger, we need to get every community protected against this deadly virus and appreciate these kinds of incentives, they make a real positive difference,” said Colorado Gov. Jared Polis. “The life-saving COVID-19 vaccines are free, quick, and easy to get and now you could receive free meat for one year, be entered to win $1 million Colorado Comeback Cash Vaccine Drawing, and a $50,000 scholarship. I encourage everyone to get vaccinated and to urge everyone you know to get the vaccine.”
“Vaccination progress in the U.S. has started to slow, with less than half of eligible Americans being fully vaccinated,” said Fabio Sandri, CEO of Pilgrim’s. “It is our hope that the ‘Your Shot at Free Meat for a Year’ sweepstakes will encourage more people to get vaccinated.”
The JBS USA and Pilgrim’s “Your Shot at Free Meat for a Year” program is a continuation of the company’s Hometown Strong initiative, which is contributing more than $70 million to support local JBS USA and Pilgrim’s communities across the country during the pandemic.
