Morgan Stanley Makes Historic Gift To Feeding America To Help Feed Families In Need

CHICAGO, May 20, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Feeding America, the nation's largest hunger-relief organization, announced today that the global financial services firm Morgan Stanley has made an $8 million commitment to the organization that will help provide nutritious food to millions of families in need across the country.

The gift from Morgan Stanley to Feeding America and its nationwide network of food banks is the largest single year gift ever received by the hunger organization from a financial institution. The donation will go to fund a number of initiatives across the Feeding America network, including:

• funding for more than $4 million in awards to food banks over the next four years, including 27 food banks in 17 states this spring that will be used to help meet the nutritional needs of families in those communities;
• enabling research on the effectiveness of Feeding America child hunger programs across the country; and
• supporting a produce program with nearly $2M in funds that will help bring fresh produce to families in need across the United States through Feeding America's network of 61,000 partner agencies such as soup kitchens, food pantries and shelters.

"With more than 50 million people in the United States in danger of going hungry, we know that we can't solve this issue alone," said Bob Aiken, President and CEO of Feeding America. "This historic gift by Morgan Stanley shows the true commitment that they have to help us fight hunger in all of our communities. We are proud to stand shoulder to shoulder with Morgan Stanley and together look for ways to erase hunger from our communities."

The timing is especially significant considering the growing number of people in the United States who are food insecure. According to the US Department of Agriculture, there are more than 50 million food insecure individuals in the US, including more than 16 million children.

"Giving back has been a cornerstone of Morgan Stanley's culture and values since our founding in 1935," said James P. Gorman, President and CEO of Morgan Stanley.  "Our partnership with Feeding America has long been an important way for us to create impact, and I am proud of the innovative programs we have worked on together that give children the healthy start they need for lifelong achievement."

Along with financial contributions to fight hunger, Morgan Stanley has also provided Feeding America with invaluable pro bono strategic consulting services that are expected to lead to the more efficient delivery of food to Feeding America's nearly 37 million clients.

Through the Morgan Stanley "Strategy Challenge," staff from Feeding America worked with Morgan Stanley experts in an effort to cut costs and improve service.  The group came up with a groundbreaking innovation called "Deal Café," a virtual community where Feeding America food banks can work together to find the best prices possible on non-food products to help reduce costs and share savings across the Network.

Feeding America officials believe the savings could generate as much as $10M across the entire Feeding America network of 202 food banks covering nearly every county in the United States.

Morgan Stanley employees are also big supporters of local Feeding America food banks and contribute a significant amount of volunteer hours. In the past year, there have been more than 175 Feeding America volunteer projects in which 3,134 Morgan Stanley employees have participated.

About Feeding America

Feeding America is a nationwide network of more than 200 food banks that leads the fight against hunger in the United States. Together, we provide food to more than 37 million people through 61,000 food pantries, soup kitchens, and shelters in communities across America. Feeding America also supports programs that 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. Visit www.feedingamerica.org. Find us on Facebook at facebook.com/FeedingAmerica or follow our news on Twitter at twitter.com/FeedingAmerica.

Contact:
Lucio Guerrero
Feeding America
312.629.7129

SOURCE Feeding America