Food Lion Helps Hungry With Bagged Apples

For every bag of specially marked Food Lion Gala apples purchased in stores through Oct. 6, the grocer’s Food Lion Feeds initiative will make a donation to Feeding America member food banks.

The bags sell for $2.99 each. The number of meals provided to each food bank is based on the number of specially marked bagged apples sold in each member food bank’s service area.

Since 2014, Food Lion customers have helped to provide more than 9 million meals through the sale of specially marked bagged apples. Last year, the bagged-apple campaign helped to provide 1 million meals to needy people across Food Lion’s 10-state market area. The 2020 campaign is expected to help provide 1 million-plus meals.

“At Food Lion, we know that far too many of our neighbors in the towns and cities we serve are food-insecure,” said Jennifer Blanchard, Food Lion’s director of community relations. “This Gala apple bag campaign is a reminder that fresh and nutritious food is a critical component for food banks to fight hunger in the towns and cities we both serve. This campaign is one of the many ways that our customers can help nourish our neighbors in need and set them up for success.”

Through Food Lion Feeds, the company has pledged to provide 1 billion more meals to people in need by the close of 2025. The grocer achieved its previous goal of donating 500 million meals early last year.

Based in Salisbury, North Carolina, Food Lion has more than 1,000 stores in 10 Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic states and employs more than 68,000 associates. Parent company Ahold Delhaize USA, a division of Zaandam, Netherlands-based Ahold Delhaize operating more than 2,000 stores across 23 states, is No. 11 on The PG 100, Progressive Grocer’s 2020 list of the top food retailers in North America.