Grocery Outlet Helps Feed People Facing Hunger With "Independence from Hunger" Campaign

BERKELEY, Calif., July 11, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- For one in six Americans, hunger is a reality.  Grocery Outlet is proud to announce the Independence from Hunger campaign, a month-long, company-wide campaign throughout July, which will bring together Grocery Outlet stores and their customers to help feed people in their local communities who are facing hunger and food insecurity.  

According to the USDA, 4.8 percent of all U.S. households have accessed emergency food from a food pantry one or more times (USDA. Mark Nord, M. Andrews, S. Carlson. Household Food Security in the United States, 2009).  Throughout July, Grocery Outlet will encourage their customers and employees to donate food and cash to support local food assistance agencies.  

"We are proud to launch the Independence from Hunger campaign to help people who don't always know where they will find their next meal," said Eric Lindberg, Co-CEO, Grocery Outlet Inc.  "Our team of independent owners and operators are committed to supporting their local communities."

Grocery Outlet's 152 stores have partnered with local food assistance agencies to help feed the need in their own towns.  Stores will also be hosting an array of events – from educational seminars about local food assistance agencies to family-friendly festivals – to drive donations and participation. Grocery Outlet has made it simple for their customers to join the cause with these in-store options:

• Look for specially-marked food items.  These are items that the local food assistance agencies currently need.  Purchase those items and place them in the collection bin at the front of the store.
• Tell a Grocery Outlet cashier that you'd like to make a cash donation at the register. Donations will go directly to the designated local food assistance agency.
• Grocery Outlet stores will provide information about hunger, food insecurity and local/national resources for people in need, inspiring their customers to be informed and helpful.

Grocery Outlet's Independence from Hunger campaign will be supported with radio advertising and collateral materials provided by Grocery Outlet headquarters in Berkeley, California.  Grocery Outlet is also hosting the "Feed the Need" Facebook contest to reward five charitable customers with a $100 donation to the non-profit charity of their choice, plus a $100 Grocery Outlet gift card for the customer to use.  The contest ends July 31, 2011, see details here:
http://www.facebook.com/GroceryOutletInc

For more information about Grocery Outlet's Independence from Hunger campaign, please visit:
http://groceryoutlet.com/default/bargainistablog/11 -06-21/Help_Us_Fight_Hunger.aspx

About Grocery Outlet

Based in Berkeley, California, Grocery Outlet offers extreme bargains on brand name merchandise, with prices often up to 50% less than conventional retailers. The largest "extreme-value" grocer in the U.S., Grocery Outlet has 152 locations in Arizona, California, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon and Washington. Grocery Outlet carries refrigerated and frozen foods, fresh produce, 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 and operated by locally-based families. For more information, please visit www.groceryoutlet.com.

Hunger Facts

For 1 in 6 Americans, hunger is a reality.  And they are often hard-working adults with families, who simply cannot make ends meet and are forced to go without food for several meals, or even days.  In fact, national food insecurity data revealed that about 45% of those struggling with hunger actually have incomes above the federal poverty level.

According to the USDA*...

• 50.2 million Americans lived in food insecure households - 33 million adults and 17.2 million children
• 1.7% of households (17.4 million households) were food insecure
• 5.7% of households (6.8 million households) experienced very low food security
• 7.8% of seniors living alone (884,000 households) were food insecure
• 4.8% of all U.S. households (5.6 million households) accessed emergency food from a food pantry one or more times.

*USDA.  Mark Nord, M. Andrews, S. Carlson.  Household Food Security in the United States, 2009.

SOURCE Grocery Outlet