Seventh Annual Food Drive Broadens Fight Against Hunger by Encouraging Contributions Via In-store Incentives and Additional Online Donation Opportunities
Emeryville, CA – Grocery Outlet Bargain Market is launching its 7th Annual Independence from Hunger® Food Drive on July 1st to donate food throughout the entire month of July, traditionally a time when food agencies experience the greatest need to serve children who are out of school during the summer. In fact, 42.2 million Americans live in food insecure households, which include 13.1 million children (USDA, Household Food Security in the United States in 2015.)
This year, as part of the campaign’s one million dollar challenge, more than 270 Grocery Outlet stores throughout the country will be collecting food and cash donations in-store and through GroceryOutlet.com/Donate. All contributions will go directly to the local food agency each store is partnering with.
“As our business grows so does our commitment to continue supporting the invaluable work of food agencies who are the essential benefactors of many families facing food insecurity,” said Grocery Outlet Inc. Co-CEO MacGregor Read. “In 2016, we raised over half a million dollars. This year, we want to challenge ourselves and our community of customers, employees and partners to make an even bigger impact by helping reach one million dollars.”
The USDA reports that 1 in every 6 Americans is food insecure and 43.1 million Americans (13.5%) were reported as living at or below the poverty level in 2015 (U.S. Census Bureau, Income, Poverty and Health Insurance Coverage in the U.S. – Data collected in 2015 and released September 2016.)
Ways customers can help:
- Give $5, get $5. Donate $5 or more in a single transaction in-store or online and you will receive a coupon for $5 off a future purchase of $25 or more.
- Pick up food items marked as “high-need” or a pre-made bag that is filled with an assortment of groceries selected by the local food agency. Purchase these items and then place them in a collection bin at the front of the store.
- Donate online by visiting com/Donate, find the local store you want to contribute to and follow the instructions.
“At the very core of Grocery Outlet, one value has always stood out above all: never stop working to provide access to high-quality and nutritious food,” said Grocery Outlet Inc. Co-CEO Eric Lindberg. “This responsibility is even stronger today, as we raise the stakes to carry out our greatest initiative yet. We are eager to see our communities join forces once more to help those in need and touch many more lives for the better.”
Each local Grocery Outlet store is independently owned and operated by families who are committed to giving back to the local community. This new edition of the national campaign will build on Grocery Outlet’s past ‘Independence from Hunger’ efforts that have collected more than 2.2 million dollars to date across the country.
Customers can help make a difference by visiting their local Grocery Outlet and participating in the Independence from Hunger® food drive. For more information, visit GroceryOutlet.com.
About Grocery Outlet
Based in Emeryville, California, Grocery Outlet offers big savings on brand name merchandise, with prices 40% to 70% less than traditional grocery stores. The fastest growing, “extreme-value” grocer in the U.S., Grocery Outlet has more than 270 locations in California, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Pennsylvania and Washington. Grocery Outlet carries refrigerated and frozen foods, fresh produce, fresh meat, organics, dry groceries, beer and wine, health and beauty care, over-the-counter drugs, household products, toys and gifts. A third-generation family-led company founded in 1946, Grocery Outlet’s mission has always been to provide customers a fun place to find extreme values on name brands they trust. Most stores are independently owned/operated by locally based families. For more information, please visit www.GroceryOutlet.com.
