Tasteful Selections Partners with Katie's Krops

Tasteful Selections from RPE is sponsoring Katie’s Krops for a second consecutive year.A portion of the profits from specially marked bags of Tasteful Selections’ Ruby Sensation and Honey Gold potatoes available October through January will go to the nonprofit. As part of this sponsorship, the 16-year-old founder, Katie Stagliano, will also be attending PMA Fresh Summit with RPE to meet with members of the produce industry. Katie’s Krops is a nonprofit organization that empowers youth across the country to grow a healthy end to hunger in their communities, one vegetable garden at a time. The organization has donated thousands of pounds of fresh produce to organizations helping people in need both from Katie’s flagship garden in South Carolina and by awarding grants to more than 80 youth-led gardens in 29 states. The mission of Katie's Krops is to start and maintain vegetable gardens of all sizes and donate the harvest, as well as to assist and inspire other young leaders to do the same. RPE and Tasteful Selections are helping Katie reach her goal of creating and maintaining 500 gardens across all 50 states by 2018 by donating proceeds from packages of Tasteful Selections potatoes to help fund Katie’s Krops gardens. “We are so excited to partner with Tasteful Selections again this year,” says Katie Stagliano, founder and chief executive gardener of Katie’s Krops. "Proceeds from the sale of the Katie’s Krops Tasteful Selections packages have already gone a long way in providing the funds that are needed to start new, youth-run Katie's Krops gardens across America and will continue to this year as well, thus providing a sustainable and healthy solution to hunger." Founded by the now 16-year-old Katie Stagliano, the idea for Katie’s Krops was conceived in 2008 when Katie grew a 40-pound cabbage and donated it to a local soup kitchen. After seeing the impact of one large cabbage, Katie was determined she could do more to help those in need, and has been doing that ever since, becoming the youngest-ever recipient of the Clinton Global Citizen Award in 2012. Katie’s powerful work has even been featured in an upcoming documentary, The Starfish Throwers. “We are delighted to continue partnering with Katie’s Krops, which is such a worthy nonprofit, bringing together hunger relief and youth volunteerism,” said Russell Wysocki, president and CEO of RPE, co-owner of Tasteful Selections. “Katie inspires people of all ages to make a difference in their communities, and we want to help Katie grow her dream.”