Tacos 4 Life holding canned food drive in November

The altruistic mindset lasts the entire year at Tacos 4 Life. But the Arkansas-based restaurant chain is putting an extra emphasis on giving in November.

The company is partnering with local food banks for a canned food drive throughout the month. For any canned food donation — no matter the size — every customer will receive a card redeemable for one free taco in December.

Austin Samuelson, who co-founded the business with his wife Ashton, said he created the program to give back locally. That’s in addition to the company’s global efforts to fight hunger. Their restaurants donate 22 cents toward feeding a child for every meal purchased at the restaurants. That 22 cents, which goes to the nonprofit Feed My Starving Children, is the cost of a meal for a malnourished child.

Tacos 4 Life donated more than 800 pounds of canned food last year in just two weeks. Since the program is now for an entire month, Samuelson said he is naturally hoping to double the number of donated goods.

Tacos 4 Life declined to disclose any sales figures, but Samuelson said the company has donated almost 7 million meals in the four years it has been in business. Tacos 4 Life has 12 locations — 10 in Arkansas and one each in North Carolina and Texas. Additional stores in Jackson, Tenn., and North Little Rock are scheduled to open before the end of the year. Two more Texas stores will open early next year in Texarkana and Waxahachie.

Tacos 4 Life has Northwest Arkansas locations in Fayetteville, Fort Smith, Rogers and Springdale.