Egg donations will be made to local food banks
in the hometowns of groundbreaking athletes this summer
CHICAGO, Aug. 2, 2024
/PRNewswire/ -- The American Egg Board today announced a new
"Breaking Records, Breaking Eggs" pledge celebrating the success
and hard work of U.S. athletes who are breaking athletic records
with a donation pledge of 1 million eggs to local food banks across
the U.S. this summer.
The Breaking Records, Breaking Eggs pledge honors U.S. athletes
breaking American records and achieving other firsts in their
sports by donating eggs to athletes' local hometown food banks,
giving everyone the opportunity to break into the invaluable egg.
Throughout the summer, the American Egg Board will select a dozen
athletes who marked their athletic performance in France by breaking records in their individual
sports -- because after all, records and eggs are meant to be
broken. To ensure that athletes and their local communities have
plentiful access to the nutritious benefits of eggs, America's egg
farmers are committed to donating over 1 million eggs to food banks
across the U.S. this summer.
"America's egg farmers are incredibly proud of the records our
U.S. athletes are breaking this summer and know how important
nutrition is for performance," says Emily
Metz, president and CEO of the American Egg Board. "From
cracking historic records to achieving monumental success for the
U.S., we know many eggs were cracked for athletes in preparation of
these moments and how critical our athletes' communities are to
their journey. We're aware of how difficult access to high-quality
protein, such as eggs, has been for many athletes while competing
in Paris. To support the
incredible moves of these athletes, we want to ensure their local
communities have access to good sources of protein with a donation
of over 1 million eggs."
Eggs are a complete source of protein with essential vitamins
and minerals to support overall health, especially for
athletes. Eggs contribute a variety of key nutrients to the
diet to help support athletes in their performance. The
high-quality protein from eggs helps maintain and repair muscle
while supporting bone health.1 Research indicates
that eating 20 to 30 grams of protein from foods that include the
amino acid leucine, such as eggs, may promote muscle repair after
exercise.2 Eggs are one of the only foods that
naturally has vitamin D (1 mcg per large egg), which along with
calcium is vital for athletes to maintain skeletal
health.3
"Eggs are an incredibly versatile, nutritious and convenient
food to use at any meal and they are found in 90% of American
refrigerators," says Jen Houchins,
Ph.D., RD, director of nutrition research at the American Egg
Board. "Eggs are a nutritional powerhouse, with one egg containing
6 grams of high-quality protein and all nine essential amino acids,
all for only 70 calories.4 Eggs are among the most
requested foods at food pantries, and access to good sources of
protein really matters. We're proud to donate eggs to local
communities and ensure access to this high-quality protein."
America's egg farmers are committed to donating eggs across the
country, with over 50 million eggs donated in 2023. To learn more
about the athletes and local communities selected for the Breaking
Records, Breaking Eggs pledge, follow @IncredibleEgg on Instagram
and visit IncredibleEgg.org as over 1 million donated eggs are
broken this summer in celebration of the records and bold
performances of American athletes.
References:
- J Int Soc Sport Nutr. 2017;14:20 (click here)
- Jäger, R., Kerksick, C.M., Campbell, B.I. et
al. International Society of Sports Nutrition Position
Stand: protein and exercise. J Int Soc Sports
Nutr 14, 20 (2017).
- Sale, C., Elliott-Sale, K.J. Nutrition and Athlete Bone
Health. Sports Med 49 (Suppl 2), 139–151
(2019).
- U.S. Department of Agriculture and Agricultural Research
Service. FoodData Central. 2019; Available
from: https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/index.html.
About American Egg Board (AEB)
Home of The Incredible Egg, American Egg Board (AEB) supports
America's egg farmers in its mission to increase demand for U.S.
eggs and egg products through research, education and promotion.
The AEB is located in Chicago. For
more, visit IncredibleEgg.org.
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SOURCE American Egg Board