Food Lion Raises $500,000 for Anti-hunger Campaign

Food Lion customers and associates raised more than $500,000 through its latest “Hunger Has A Cure” campaign, which supports Feeding America’s network of local food banks that provide 3.7 million meals to those in need.

The two-week campaign, which ran April 4 through April 17, allowed customers to donate $1, $3 or any other amount of their choice at checkout.

“We are ecstatic about the more than 3.7 million meals that we were able to provide to families in need,” said Bill Garcia, manager of community relations for Food Lion. “We are proud to work with Feeding America to help eliminate hunger in our communities.”

Campaign organizers said that 75 percent of the proceeds will be distributed to local Feeding America food banks in the Food Lion footprint where the funds were raised, with the remaining 25 percent set to be donated to the national Feeding America organization that helps provide eight meals per every $1 donated.

In addition to area food banks receiving the proceeds of the Hunger Has A Cure campaign, five food banks – including Food Bank of Central & Eastern North Carolina, Raleigh, N.C., the Baltimore-based Maryland Food Bank, Blue Ridge Area Food Bank, Inc.,Verona, Va., Southwestern Virginia Second Harvest Food Bank, Salem, Va. and Richmond’s Feedmore Central Virginia Food Bank -- will receive an additional $5,000 from Food Lion to honor the extraordinary support from customers in five top fundraising areas.

A division of Delhaize America, the U.S. division of Brussels-based Delhaize Group, Salisbury, N.C.-based Food Lion operates more than 1,100 supermarkets and employs approximately 57,000 associates.