The north Georgia community raised more than $378,000 for local families in need through the 12th annual Walmart and Sam's Club Fight Hunger. Spark Change. campaign. This substantial donation comes at a critical time for the estimated 1 in 8 people in metro Atlanta and north Georgia who are experiencing food insecurity.
Supported by local shoppers, associates, and dedicated partnerships with food and beverage brands, the campaign provides crucial support to The Atlanta Community Food Bank during a period of increasing need. Kyle Waide, President and CEO of the Atlanta Community Food Bank, emphasized the growing challenge, stating that more households and neighbors in communities are facing food insecurity, with the Food Bank distributing 112 million meals during their most recent fiscal year to children, families and seniors struggling to make ends meet.
The Atlanta Community Food Bank will be able to provide over 1,134,000 meals for neighbors in need thanks to the generosity of local community members. Through a network of more than 700 community-based, nonprofit partners, the Food Bank distributes and provides access to fresh, nutritious food across communities in metro Atlanta and north Georgia. To date, the campaign has helped secure more than 2.3 billion meals for Feeding America food banks throughout the country.
Kayla Burton, senior manager of Cause Marketing and Customer Engagement at Walmart, highlighted the community effort, noting that helping neighbors put food on the table is at the heart of what they do in the community. The annual donation campaign, which ran March 1-31, continued 20 years of partnership between Walmart, Sam's Club and Feeding America, with approximately $281 million in donations including more than $177 million from the company and the Walmart Foundation and nearly $105 million from customers and members.
Since 2006, Walmart stores and Sam's Clubs have donated more than 9 billion pounds of food. The campaign featured participation from 24 suppliers for Walmart including major brands such as The Coca-Cola Company, General Mills, Kraft Heinz, and Pepsi-Cola Advertising & Marketing, Inc., and six participating suppliers for Sam's Club including Nestlé and Unilever. More information about hunger relief efforts can be found at ACFB.org.
