WESTLAKE VILLAGE, California — February 17, 2009 — Dole Food Company, Inc. through its shipping division, Dole Ocean Cargo Express, announced today it has partnered with MedShare, a nonprofit organization, to assist in shipping unused, unexpired surplusmedical supplies and equipment to Latin America. The first shipment went to Honduras in December 2008.MedShare, a “Top Ten” ranked charity by Charity Navigator, collects surplus medical supplies and equipment from hospitals and medical supply manufacturers and then redistributes them to qualified healthcare facilities in developing countries.Dole shipped the supplies on December 22, 2008 to a health clinic in rural Honduras serving approximately 40,000 people. The health clinic treats patients who suffer from malnutrition, anemia and other illnesses associated with extreme poverty. Dole’s shipment contained over 13,000 lbs. of supplies and equipment including basic but necessary supplies such as latex gloves, surgical kits, syringes and hospital beds.“The clinic in Honduras lacks the necessary medical supplies needed for proper patient care; supplies that are in abundance here in America. We are very grateful to Dole for this initial shipment and look forward to working with them on future shipments to Latin America,” said Chuck Haupt, Executive Director of MedShare’s Western Region.The health care facility where the supplies are going was started by the ENLACE Foundation in Indianapolis, Indiana. These life-saving supplies will help improve the community’s health status, thus enhancing productivity, academic achievement and living conditions. The clinic will also serve as a training site for Honduran physicians, as well as Indiana University medical students.Dole Food Company, Inc., with 2008 revenues of $7.6 billion, is the world’s largest producer and marketer of high-quality fresh fruit and fresh vegetables. Dole markets a growing line of packaged foods and frozen fruit and is a produce industry leader in nutrition education and research. For more information on the company’s CSR efforts, please visit www.dolecsr.com.About MedShare International:MedShare International is a 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to collecting and redistributing surplus medical supplies and equipment to healthcare institutions in economically developing countries. Since MedShare’s inception in 1998, the organization has retrieved more than $60 million in surplus medical supplies and equipment from U.S. donors and shipped over 450 forty-foot medical aid containers to healthcare facilities all over the world. For more information, please visit the organization’s website at: www.medshare.org.Related posts: