Everyone needs nutritious food to thrive, and in communities across America, people are working hard to provide for themselves and their families. Yet according to Feeding America, one in five children in Georgia will go to bed hungry tonight.
For the 12th straight year, all U.S. Walmart and Sam’s Club locations have launched the “Fight Hunger. Spark Change.” campaign, including in Coastal Georgia, in partnership with Second Harvest of Coastal Georgia, where an estimated 131,820 people face food insecurity every day. The goal of the campaign is to provide people facing hunger with access to the food and resources they need to thrive. Since its inception in 2014, the campaign has generated more than $206 million and helped secure two billion meals* for the Feeding America® network of local food banks.
The campaign is running in stores and online from March 1-March 31, with three ways for shoppers to participate:
- By donating at check-out in stores or clubs – or by rounding up at Walmart.com and the Walmart app.
- By purchasing participating products* in-store or online at Walmart.com or SamsClub.com. For every purchase of a participating product, the supplier will donate the monetary equivalent** of at least one meal ($0.10) on behalf of a Feeding America partner food bank at Walmart and five meals ($0.50) at Sam’s Club, up to applicable limits. See specially marked packages for full details.
- By donating at Feeding America’s Fight Hunger. Spark Change. campaign donation site at either www.FeedingAmerica.org/Walmart or www.FeedingAmerica.org/SamsClub.
"Local food insecurity is a direct reflection of challenges facing communities where too many individuals and families struggle to make ends meet,” said Mary Jane Crouch, Executive Director of Second Harvest of Coastal Georgia. “‘Fight Hunger. Spark Change.’ plays a crucial role in bridging the gap, ensuring that those who are most vulnerable have access to the nourishment they need and help to provide for their families."
Last year’s campaign raised a staggering $80,978 for Second Harvest of Coastal Georgia alone, with $46,152 being raised directly from rounding up at the register. The food bank is able to provide up to five meals for each dollar donated, so this created roughly 405,000 meals for food-insecure Coastal Georgians. This strengthened the giving power of the food bank’s network of over 237 partner organizations and nonprofit agencies, which distributes food to neighbors throughout the region.
“For the past 20 years, Feeding America, Walmart and Sam’s Club have worked together to fight hunger and help people live better in the communities we serve,” said Julie Gehrki, president, Walmart Foundation and senior vice president, philanthropy at Walmart. “During the ‘Fight Hunger. Spark Change.’ campaign, we invite our customers and members to join us in providing access to food for our neighbors by supporting Second Harvest of Coastal Georgia food bank.”
The 22 participating suppliers for Walmart include: B&G Foods, Inc., Bush Brothers & Company, The Coca-Cola Company, Conagra Foods, Dole Packaged Foods, LLC, General Mills, Hershey Salty Snacks, Kellanova, Keurig Dr. Pepper, Kodiak, Kraft Heinz, Lipton Tea, Ben’s Original, Materne, Mondelez International, Olipop, Pepsi-Cola Advertising & Marketing, Inc., Hidden Valley Original Ranch, The Hain Celestial Group, WK Kellogg Co, Unilever and Utz Quality Foods. The seven participating suppliers for Sam’s Club include: Ferrero USA, Kellanova, Kodiak, Kraft Heinz, General Mills, Nestlé and Unilever
For more information, visit: feedingamerica.org/campaigns/fight-hunger-spark-change. /
*Currently, $1 helps provide at least 10 meals secured by Feeding America® on behalf of local partner food banks.
** For every purchase of a participating product, the supplier will donate the monetary equivalent of at least one meal ($0.10) on behalf of a Feeding America partner food bank at Walmart and five meals ($0.50) at Sam’s Club, up to applicable limits. See specially marked packages for full details.
