Amid the continuing crisis of COVID-19, the soy-biobased family is rallying support for frontline heroes in New York City and beyond.

Okabashi Seeks to Send 10,000 Soy-biobased Sandals to the Nation’s Frontline Heroes

Okabashi Brands has reached the halfway point to their goal of donating 10,000 pairs of their soy-based sandals to frontline heroes across the nation.

“We’ve donated over 5000 pairs so far, and still counting!” says Okabashi President Kim Falkenhayn. “We’re sending them all over the country. We’re all in this together.”

With every order placed through their website or Zappos (up to 10,000 pairs), Okabashi will donate a pair of comfortable, machine washable sandals to frontline workers. They invite customers to add a note of encouragement with their order. Okabashi will attach it to the donated sandals.

Made with 45% U.S soy by weight, Okabashi’s sandals also help customers shrink their environmental footprint.

NBB, New York Corn and Soybean Growers Association, USB, SYNLawn Share Meals & More to Support New York First Responders

The National Biodiesel Board (NBB) partnered with the New York Fire Department (FDNY)Incident Management Team (IMT) to provide meals to firefighters, dispatchers, mechanics and other essential employees who work long days during COVID-19. With funds from NBB and others, the IMT sourced meals from local restaurants and delivered them in their equipment that runs on biodiesel year-round.

The New York Corn and Soybean Growers Association supported nearly half of the 3000 meals for the New York City crews. In addition, Executive Director Colleen Klein led an effort to assemble 750 care packages containing New York soy snacks, apples, cheese, and other snacks. She personally delivered them from Upstate to New York City.

Additionally, the owner of SYNLawn New York City, a local distributor of soy-backed grass, joined by contributing $3,000 to purchase meals. The SYNLawn corporate team in Dalton, GA followed suit and matched with another $3,000.

The United Soybean Board also joined the effort and provided 750 2-ounce bottles of hand sanitizer to the FDNY who were responding to twice their usual amount of emergency calls. Hand sanitizer can be made with glycerin, which is separated from the vegetable oil or fat during biodiesel production.