Milk is one of the most requested — yet least donated — products at food banks. For years, Somula “Sam” Schwoeppe has been working to change that, combining her love for the dairy industry with her passion for fighting food insecurity.
Sam and her husband, Darren, are fourth-generation dairy farmers. They, along with their two sons, Wyatt and Ethan, own and operate Schwoeppe Dairy LLC in Huntingburg, Indiana, milking 120 cows and growing 450 acres of hay and corn silage for the cows.
Sam also works as the director for business partnerships at Fresh Connect Central, an agri-food distributor operated by Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana. The business was established in 2017 by Feeding America, the largest network of food banks in the United States, as part of its strategy to close meal gaps and support the health and wellness of people facing food insecurity. Part of that involves rescuing as much farm-fresh food as possible and redirecting it to food banks.
Schwoeppe first started working with food banks as a regional dairy manager with Feeding America, but food insecurity itself was something Schwoeppe encountered as a child.
“My parents were foster parents, so our house was open to people from all different backgrounds,” she said. “I learned at an early age about challenges people face.”
Sam said she regularly thinks about one boy in particular who came to live with them and was so malnourished he “looked like a little old man.” After one month of regular meals, she saw a total transformation.
“It was the most incredible thing,” Schwoeppe said. “Even his eyes were more brilliant after good nutrition. I think about kids like that a lot in this work.”
Milk provides 13 essential nutrients, and dairy consumption helps Americans meet recommendations for calcium, vitamin D and potassium — three of the four under-consumed nutrients of public health concern. Milk provides a unique nutritional package, which Schwoeppe says is helpful for meeting food bank needs.
“Milk is the perfect food to bridge nutrition gaps in the community,” she said.
She also said she’s always been grounded by her work on the farm, and that having a multi-generational perspective of agriculture helps her appreciate even more the work she does with food banks.
“It’s so fabulous how the dairy industry turns out in this space,” Sam said. “At Feeding America, I was blessed with the opportunity to work with many dairy cooperatives on programs that worked to provide nutrient-dense dairy to communities across the country.”
Schwoeppe serves as a member of the board of directors and treasurer of her own cooperative, Prairie Farms Dairy Inc. She said she is proud of everything Prairie Farms does to ensure children have access to milk in schools, as well as the cooperative’s frequent and large donations to food banks across the country.
Cooperatives work together in many ways to support healthy communities — but individuals can make a difference, too. Sam says that even small acts of kindness can have lasting effects.
“When we talk about hunger and other problems our communities face, sometimes things seem so big that people feel like they can’t make a difference or they don’t know where to start,” Schwoeppe said. “But if we all do something small, that’s a huge lift. So, jump in with your heart.”
