Helping the Houston Food Bank provide meals to the community

As food pantries continue to face supply shortages and soaring demand due to the COVID-19 pandemic, bp is helping the Houston Food Bank provide much-needed assistance to the community.

The food services team at bp’s Westlake campus cafeteria is cooking hundreds of hot meals every week for the Houston Food Bank to distribute to community partners that lost their previous sources of food. They are donating nearly 800 meals each week to Hope Center, a shelter for people experiencing homelessness, and Temenos Community Development Corporation, which operates housing communities for at-risk seniors.

The team, who has been serving far fewer customers than usual while most campus staff work from home, has prepared more than 11,000 meals for the Houston Food Bank since April. They plan to continue cooking and donating meals through the end of the year. 

“The need at the food bank is greater than ever, and it’s been a fantastic way for our team to use their culinary talents to support the community,” said Joe Abuso, bp corporate food and beverage director. 

Some of the meals prepared and donated by the team so far include beef stroganoff, spaghetti Bolognese, barbecue brisket, King Ranch chicken, carne guisada, jambalaya, Italian sausage pasta and chicken enchiladas.