WALLINGFORD, CONN. – The Connecticut Food Bank announced a $75,000 grant from the Walmart Foundation to fund the infrastructure that will ultimately help the food bank’s partner agencies secure and distribute more nutritious food to families in need. The grant will support investments in the equipment necessary to handle perishable products, such as refrigerated vehicles; coolers and freezers for transporting, storing and distributing food; thermometers and temperature calibration devices; among other items.
“One in eight people struggle with hunger in Connecticut, including more than 127,000 children,” said Connecticut Food Bank CEO Bernie Beaudreau. “We are thankful to the Walmart Foundation for helping to ensure that people who struggle with hunger have access to nutrient-rich food. This grant will go a long way in helping the Connecticut Food Bank and our partner agencies provide much-needed food to hungry neighbors in the six Connecticut Counties we serve.” Beaudreau noted that 57 programs located throughout the Connecticut Food Bank’s six-county service area received refrigeration equipment through the grant. “It’s a tremendous capacity builder for programs,” he said.
The Connecticut Food Bank secures fresh, perishable food from retailers in Fairfield, Litchfield, Middlesex, New Haven, New London and Windham counties. Working with retailers and local growers to move this food into the network of local food assistance agencies creates a need among those agencies for refrigerated storage. The Walmart Foundation grant has helped the Connecticut Food Bank provide refrigeration equipment to seven local programs, increasing their capacity to store and distribute healthy, fresh food.
The Walmart Foundation has been instrumental in helping food banks rescue and distribute more perishable food from retailers across the United States in a sustainable, cost-effective way. This grant is a part of Walmart and the Walmart Foundation’s ongoing commitment to helping families who struggle with hunger by providing four billion meals to people in need in the U.S. by 2020.
With food insecurity remaining high throughout the country, the ability to distribute more food is critical for food banks. According to the USDA, more than 42 million people nationwide are food insecure, which means that they may not know where they will find their next meal. In the Connecticut Food Bank six-county service area, nearly 300,000 residents are food insecure. To learn more about what the Connecticut Food Bank is doing to fight hunger, visit www.ctfoodbank.org.
About the Connecticut Food Bank:
The Connecticut Food Bank is committed to alleviating hunger in Connecticut by providing food resources, raising awareness of the challenges of hunger and advocating for people who need help meeting basic needs. The Connecticut Food Bank partners with the food industry, food growers, donors and volunteers to distribute nutritious food to people in need, which last year provided 21 million meals. We distribute that food through a network of community based programs to six Connecticut counties - Fairfield, Litchfield, Middlesex, New Haven, New London and Windham counties – where more than 300,000 people struggle with hunger. Visit us on the web at www.ctfoodbank.org, like us on Facebook and follow @CTFoodBank on Twitter and Instagram.