Darden Restaurants is partnering with Feeding America for the fourth consecutive year to ensure food reaches people facing hunger.
Fueled by a $2 million grant from the Darden Foundation, and the assistance of Penske Truck Leasing, 10 additional Feeding America member food banks will receive 26-ft. refrigerated trucks with 12,000 lbs. of capacity to support food distribution and mobile pantry programs at food banks serving communities in need.
Food banks receiving a truck this year include:
- Central California Food Bank (Fresno, Calif.)
- Coastal Bend Food Bank (Corpus Christi, Texas)
- Feeding America, Kentucky's Heartland (Elizabethtown, Ky.)
- Harvest Hope Food Bank (Columbia, S.C.)
- Inter-Faith Food Shuttle (Raleigh, N.C.)
- Middle Georgia Community Food Bank (Macon, Ga.)
- Second Harvest of the Greater Valley (Manteca, Calif.)
- South Texas Food Bank (Laredo, Texas)
- Three Square Food Bank (Las Vegas, Nev.)
- United Food Bank (Mesa, Ariz.)
“Darden is uniquely positioned to make a meaningful impact in the movement to end hunger,” Rick Cardenas, Darden Restaurants president and CEO, said in a news release. “Through our ongoing partnership with Feeding America and our Harvest food donation program, we leverage our resources to help combat food insecurity, ensuring nutritious meals reach families who need them most.”
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) reports that 13.5% of households experienced food insecurity in 2023, an increase from 12.8% in 2022. Consequently, the USDA estimates that approximately 47 million people in the U.S. face hunger. Ensuring food banks have reliable transportation is essential, as it directly impacts their ability to deliver food efficiently and prevent waste.
“Hunger exists in every zip code in the U.S., and it can affect anyone,” Feeding America CEO Claire Babineaux-Fontenot said. “Basic costs like housing—or an unexpected expense—are breaking budgets across the country. We are deeply grateful for the continued partnership with Darden and Penske. Their support helps strengthen our efforts to ensure food reaches communities where it is needed most and to enable food banks to share fresh, healthy food like produce and dairy with people facing hunger.”
