For 1 in 8 people in our country, hunger is a reality.
• 35 million Americans don’t know where they will get their next meal.
• 9 million of them are children.
• 3 million of them are senior citizens.
• 36% of these households have one or more working adults.
• 42% of these households are in rural and suburban areas.
You Can Help Bring Hope to the Table
More families than ever are turning to local food banks for help. Food banks are in desperate need of donations … and you can help. The next time you’re at our store, pick up a “Bringing Hope to the Table” reusable bag. They cost just $1.99 and with each bag purchased, $1.30 is donated directly to a local food bank – that’s enough to provide a meal for a family of four. That means you’ll be supporting a local food bank, helping a family right here in your 
community, and bringing hope to the table.
You can also make a donation, write a letter, or hold a food drive. Go to Feeding America to learn more about the face of hunger in our communities and find the local food bank helping to feed hungry children and families where you live.
Leading the Fight to End Hunger in America
For nearly 30 years, The Kroger Co. has helped lead the fight against hunger in the United States.
Kroger is one of the founding members of Feeding America (formerly known as America’s Second Harvest) the nation’s leading domestic hunger-relief charity. In 2008, Kroger contributed 18 million pounds of food and other product to Feeding America, to assist hungry families in the communities we serve. Valued at $27 million, those donations translate to roughly 15 million meals.
In the past five years, Kroger’s donations have totaled 130 million pounds of food – valued at nearly $200 million.
All of our regional grocery divisions work closely with more than 200 local hunger relief agencies, including more than 80 local food banks that are members of the Feeding America network. These food banks provide food and other personal items to pantries, soup kitchens and feeding programs for children and seniors.
Our people give their time and talent to this important cause. Kroger executives and senior managers serve on the boards of local food banks and the Feeding America national organization. Associates volunteer to sort donations, stock shelves and pack care boxes. This close partnership with food banks means we understand their needs very well and work with them to improve their operations.
The Kroger Co. Foundation provides grants to local food banks. These grants help food banks purchase trucks and refrigeration equipment, buy new computers to improve their logistics operations and fund new projects.
Expanding Our Efforts
In 2006, Kroger launched Bringing Hope to the Table®, a cause-marketing partnership with Feeding America that brings our vendors and customers into the process of fighting hunger in the communities we all share. Since its inception, the program has directed $12 million in funds and $4 million in product to Feeding America food banks in locations across the country where we operate stores.
Our ongoing commitment to bringing as much food as possible to hungry families led to the creation of a new Company-wide food rescue program, the Perishable Donations Partnership. The program allows fresh, nutritious products such as meat, produce and dairy products to be donated directly from our stores to local food banks that are able to safely handle perishable foods. When the program roll out is complete in 2009, we believe it will generate 30 million pounds of additional food donations in the communities we serve.