(DETROIT – April 22, 2019) – One in eight Americans in communities across the U.S. struggle with hunger, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, including nearly 1 in 6 residents in southeast Michigan. To raise awareness and combat the issue, Walmart, Sam’s Club, Feeding America® and Gleaners Community Food Bank are kicking off its sixth annual nationwide “Fight Hunger. Spark Change.” (FHSC) campaign, which will run from April 22 to May 20. In partnership with Gleaners, Walmart and Sam’s Club now invite southeast Michigan shoppers to help fight hunger in their local community. There are three ways to participate – purchasing a participating item in-store or online, donating in-store, or donating on Feeding America’s website.
With 749 million meals achieved over the last five years,
southeast Michigan customers and members can help the Feeding America
network secure its 1 billion cumulative meals goal in three ways. They
can track the number of meals by visiting www.walmart.com/fighthunger.
For
every participating product purchased at U.S. Walmart stores, Sam’s
Clubs or on Walmart.com during the campaign, the supplier will donate
the monetary equivalent of at least one meal ($0.10) on behalf of a
Feeding America member food bank, up to applicable limits.
Donate money to your local Feeding America food bank at participating Sam’s Club and Walmart stores in the U.S.
Donate at feedingamerica.org/Walmart.
Walmart
kickstarted the campaign with a $3 million donation to Feeding America
and member food banks including Gleaners. A purchase of one of the 267
participating items helps secure the equivalent of one meal. Each
Walmart and Sam’s Club will partner with at least one Feeding America
local food bank, and the 18 participating suppliers include: Bush
Brothers, Campbell’s, Conagra Brands, Cliff Bar, General Mills, Gold
Peak Tea, Great Value, Hidden Valley, JM Smucker, Kellogg, Kraft Heinz,
McCormick, Motts, PepsiCo, Post, Uncle Ben’s, Nature Nate’s Honey and
Unilever.
“With the economy doing better, people may think that
there is no longer a need, but there are still many people in our
community who are burdened by the toxic stress of not knowing where
their next meal is coming from. We hear from families all the time about
the challenges they face, from jobs that don’t pay enough to mounting
utility bills to health issues that prevent them from working,” Gleaners
President Gerry Brisson says.
“That’s why we are so grateful
for the support of generous partners like Walmart. Everyone wins when
hunger is solved, and we can achieve our goal by joining forces and
working together.”
“As we go into our sixth year of the ‘Fight
Hunger. Spark Change.’ campaign, it’s exciting to approach the 1 billion
mark in terms of charitable meals secured for Feeding America over the
life of the program,” said Kathleen McLaughlin, chief sustainability
officer for Walmart. “Food insecurity continues to affect communities
across the United States. Working with Feeding America, our customers,
members, associates and suppliers, Walmart and Sam’s Club aim to be part
of the solution.”
Last year, Gleaners benefited from more than
$30,000 from Walmart and Sam’s Club’s commitment to fight hunger,
providing more than 90,000 meals for families, children, and seniors in
need.
To learn more about the campaign visit www.walmart.com/fighthunger.
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About Walmart
Walmart
Inc. (NYSE: WMT) helps people around the world save money and live
better – anytime and anywhere – in retail stores, online, and through
their mobile devices. Each week, over 275 million customers and members
visit our more than 11,300 stores under 58 banners in 27 countries and
eCommerce websites. With fiscal year 2019 revenue of $514.4 billion,
Walmart employs over 2.2 million associates worldwide. Walmart
continues to be a leader in sustainability, corporate philanthropy and
employment opportunity. Additional information about Walmart can be
found by visiting http://corporate.walmart.com, on Facebook at
http://facebook.com/walmart and on Twitter at
http://twitter.com/walmart.
About Feeding America
Feeding
America® is the largest hunger-relief organization in the United
States. Through a network of 200 food banks and 60,000 food pantries and
meal programs, we provide meals to more than 46 million people each
year. Feeding America also supports programs that prevent food waste and
improve food security among the people we serve; educates the public
about the problem of hunger; and advocates for legislation that protects
people from going hungry. Individuals, charities, businesses and
government all have a role in ending hunger. Donate. Volunteer.
Advocate. Educate. Together we can solve hunger. Visit
www.feedingamerica.org, find us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter.
About Gleaners Community Food Bank
For
more than 40 years, Gleaners Community Food Bank has been “feeding
hungry people and nourishing our communities.” Annually, Gleaners
reaches 430,000 food-insecure individuals with 43 million pounds of
nutritious food, equivalent to more than 35 million meals, through
500-plus partner schools, soup kitchens, shelters and pantries in Wayne,
Oakland, Macomb, Livingston and Monroe counties. Of every dollar
donated, Gleaners uses 93 cents for food and food programs. One dollar
provides three meals for a hungry neighbor. For more information, visit
www.gcfb.org