Indiana Pork, Fort Wayne TinCaps donate over 500 pounds of ground pork

The Fort Wayne TinCaps and Indiana Pork are donating nearly 2,300 meals of ground pork to the Community Harvest Food Bank of Northeast Indiana. This comes after the team sold 2,294 tenderloin sandwiches at Parkview Field this past season, with the majority of sales coming when the TinCaps hosted the “Hoosier State Tenderloins Series” presented by Indiana Pork in June.

In the spirit of Hoosiers helping their fellow Hoosiers, for each sandwich sold, a meal of ground pork is being donated to help members of the community in need.

“We’re thrilled to have a partnership that results in so much good for our community,” said TinCaps Vice President of Marketing and Promotions Michael Limmer. “We’re proud that a fun name and idea like the Hoosier State Tenderloins has translated into the opportunity to provide more than 2,200 meals for local families in need.”

The 2,294-plus meals also translates to more than 500 pounds of ground pork. Indiana is the fifth-largest pork producing state in the U.S. with nearly 3,000 Hoosier pig farmers.

“Indiana pig farmers are always happy to feed our neighbors,” said Mark Johnson, Whitley County pork producer and Indiana Pork board member. “Our farmers are happy to donate pork to their local food pantries and are equally excited to partner with the TinCaps to make a big donation to help feed Fort Wayne residents.”

During the three-day celebration of Indiana’s unofficial state sandwich, the TinCaps not only featured breaded tenderloins on the Parkview Field menu, but rebranded as the Hoosier State Tenderloins with uniforms and in-game promotions.

While the Breaded Tenderloin Sandwich is universally revered around the Hoosier State, it originated in Northeast Indiana, not far from Parkview Field. Just 25 miles southeast of the ballpark in downtown Huntington, Nick’s Kitchen has been treating customers to tasty tenderloin sandwiches since 1908. Now, Nick’s is the first stop on what has been named the Tenderloin Trail that weaves throughout the state all the way down to Evansville.

After debuting in 2023, the Hoosier State Tenderloins were recognized as a “Best Alternate Identity” around Minor League Baseball and even featured on national TV on MLB Network.