VALDOSTA — A tasty treat for military personnel deployed overseas is being distributed by South Georgia Pecan this holiday season.

Pecans for Soldiers, started this year, will send bags of pecans to soldiers serving in Afghanistan and Iraq, said Paul Joseph, vice president of sales.

South Georgia Pecan has sent packages of pecans to deployed soldiers since the war started.

A person, who wished to remain anonymous came in and asked for help to send four or five boxes of pecans four times a year, Joseph said.

For the last eight years South Georgia Pecan has been helping distribute those boxes and matching whatever the person sent, but this year the goal was to get more of the community involved, he said.

There are several ways people can purchase a bag of pecans for soldiers.

If a person comes in the store they can choose what type of bag they want to send and write a small note that will be stuck to the bag for the soldier, Joseph said.

People calling in orders will be asked if they want to purchase a bag for soldiers.

Bags are sold at cost for $5, he said.

Joseph’s goal is to send at least 1,000 bags over the holiday season.

He expects to send out his first shipment the last week of November and a second shipment during the second week of December.

The pecans will go to all branches of the military, from Air Force to Marines. The pecans are destined for soldiers who have “boots on the ground,” Joseph said.

A lot of times when soldiers leave base camps they are very restricted in what they can take. Pecans provide a nutritious snack and protein-filled supplement to go along with MREs, he said.