{"id":82531,"date":"2026-09-28T23:55:41","date_gmt":"2026-09-29T03:55:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/?p=82531"},"modified":"2026-09-28T23:55:47","modified_gmt":"2026-09-29T03:55:47","slug":"the-annual-uf-ifas-extension-famu-cooperative-extension-peanut-butter-challenge","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/2026\/09\/28\/the-annual-uf-ifas-extension-famu-cooperative-extension-peanut-butter-challenge\/","title":{"rendered":"The annual UF\/IFAS Extension & FAMU Cooperative Extension Peanut Butter Challenge"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The annual UF\/IFAS Extension & FAMU Cooperative Extension Peanut Butter Challenge<\/strong> is back for October 2026.<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n

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\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

This statewide food drive brings Florida communities together to support local food pantries while celebrating one of Florida\u2019s major agricultural crops.<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n

How the Challenge Works<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
    \n
  • The Goal:<\/strong> Collect unopened, unexpired jars of peanut butter (any brand, size, or style\u2014creamy and crunchy are both welcome!) to fight food insecurity ahead of the holiday season.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • The Competition:<\/strong> Counties across Florida compete for bragging rights to see who can gather the most peanut butter by weight\/jar count before the drive ends.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • The Impact:<\/strong> Every jar collected stays in the county where it was donated and goes directly to local community food pantries.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n
    \n
    \"\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

    Why Peanut Butter?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    Peanut butter is one of the most requested items at food banks.<\/sup> It is nutrient-dense, shelf-stable, protein-rich, and popular across all ages.<\/sup> Plus, peanuts are a vital Florida crop\u2014the state consistently ranks among the top producers in the U.S.<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    How to Participate<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
      \n
    1. Where to Drop Off:<\/strong> You can drop off jars at your local UF\/IFAS Extension County Office<\/strong> (including Hillsborough, Pinellas, Pasco, Polk, and Manatee counties) as well as designated public collection bins at local libraries, parks, and government buildings throughout October.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    2. Organize a Drive:<\/strong> Local businesses, schools, and neighborhood groups can set up their own collection barrels and deliver gathered jars to their extension office by October 31.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

      Main Drop-Off Center<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

      UF\/IFAS Extension Polk County Click to open side panel for more information serves as the primary collection hub for the county’s peanut butter drive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        \n
      • Address:<\/strong> 1702 S. Holland Parkway (Hwy 17 S), Bartow, FL 33830<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Hours:<\/strong> Monday \u2013 Friday, 8:00 AM \u2013 5:00 PM<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Details:<\/strong> Collection barrels are available in the lobby during normal business hours throughout October.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

        Additional Local Collection Bins<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

        During October, partner organizations and local government offices across Polk County often host temporary collection bins:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          \n
        • Polk County Libraries & Government Buildings:<\/strong> Select county branch libraries and administrative centers set up collection barrels for public drop-offs.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • Community & 4-H Clubs:<\/strong> Local 4-H youth development clubs and community extension programs collect jars at scheduled events.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

          All collected unopened, unexpired peanut butter jars stay within Polk County to support local food banks and pantries ahead of the holiday season.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

          The annual UF\/IFAS Extension & FAMU Cooperative Extension Peanut Butter Challenge is back for October 2026. This statewide food drive brings Florida communities together to support local food pantries while… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":82534,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","_seopress_robots_follow":"","_seopress_robots_imageindex":"","_seopress_robots_snippet":"","_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_robots_breadcrumbs":"","_seopress_robots_freeze_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_custom_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_canonical":"","_seopress_social_fb_title":"","_seopress_social_fb_desc":"","_seopress_social_fb_img":"","_seopress_social_fb_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_height":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_title":"","_seopress_social_twitter_desc":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_height":0,"_seopress_redirections_value":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled_regex":"","_seopress_redirections_logged_status":"","_seopress_redirections_param":"","_seopress_redirections_type":0,"_seopress_analysis_target_kw":"","inline_featured_image":false,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"wpai_generated_summary":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"dois","default_image_id":71799,"font":"","enabled":false,"token":"eyJpbWciOiJodHRwczpcL1wvbGFrZWxhbmRnYXpldHRlLmluZm9cL25ld3NcL3dwLWNvbnRlbnRcL3VwbG9hZHNcLzIwMjZcLzA5XC9pbWFnZXMtMjQud2VicCIsInR4dCI6IlRoZSBhbm51YWwgVUZcL0lGQVMgRXh0ZW5zaW9uICZhbXA7IEZBTVUgQ29vcGVyYXRpdmUgRXh0ZW5zaW9uIFBlYW51dCBCdXR0ZXIgQ2hhbGxlbmdlIiwidGVtcGxhdGUiOiJkb2lzIiwiZm9udCI6IiIsImJsb2dfaWQiOjE2MzA0MDY2MX0.LBDLWUbxnbtvFXlrHkvl8II3xSSyC7Li20H1s0pRfvwMQ"},"version":2,"media_source":"featured-image","attached_media":[{"id":82534,"url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/images-24.webp?fit=447%2C447&ssl=1","type":"image\/jpeg"}]},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false},"categories":[6],"tags":[17640],"class_list":["post-82531","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-community","tag-annual-uf-ifas-extension-famu-cooperative-extension-peanut-butter-challenge"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/82531","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=82531"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/82531\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":82536,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/82531\/revisions\/82536"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/82534"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=82531"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=82531"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=82531"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}