Hometown Food Security Project and Hormel Foods Present: “A Work of Art – Creating Food Security” Exhibit

 The challenge of combating food insecurity is complex, and later this month, hundreds of local high school students will illustrate the causes and consequences of this issue with their art.

The Hometown Food Security Project (HFSP) and Hormel Foods Corporation in collaboration with Austin High School invite residents of Austin and surrounding communities to attend “A Work of Art: Creating Food Security.” The exhibition will showcase creative projects produced by local high school students with a theme of fighting food insecurity in Mower County and around the world. The effort aims to empower students to share their vision and ideas for solutions.

The open house event, which is free to the public, will be held at the SPAM® Museum (101 3rd Ave. NE, Austin) on Thursday, April 25, from 4:30 p.m. – 7 p.m. Nearly 200 pieces of art including drawings, paintings, pottery, essays and photography will be on display.

According to Gema Alvarado-Guerrero, co-leader for HFSP and Wellness Facilitator at Hormel Foods, the students were challenged to think outside the box and get as creative as they could with their projects.

The Hometown Food Security Project is a coalition of local nonprofit organizations, businesses, government agencies, schools, healthcare facilities, volunteers and hunger-relief partners with the vision that “no one goes hungry in Mower County.” The coalition believes a food-secure community can be achieved, and that there’s no better place to start than in our hometown.

Students will also be sharing their ideas about potential hunger solutions through essays they’ve worked on in AP Human Geography classes. Many of them will go on to present their ideas at the Minnesota Youth Institute, an initiative of the World Food Prize, a foundation working to reduce hunger around the world. The students presenting their ideas to the World Food Prize Youth Institute will be available to talk about their initiative and work at the “A Work of Art: Creating Food Security” event.

Anyone with questions or who want to learn more about the event can visit the HFSP’s website at https://hometownfoodsecurity.org/community-event-a-work-of-art/ or email [email protected].