The generosity of the food and beverage industry is on full display as companies – some with limited resources – give what they can to those serving on the frontlines of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, and to those in need, including many who unexpectedly lost jobs as measures to flatten the curve also flatten the economy.
As a “people-first organization,” Bumble Bee Seafood Company is directing more than $2m to ease the negative impact of the pandemic on its staff and the people in its broader community. It has allotted $1.2m in increased hourly wages for factory workers who its says play a critical role in feeding families across the country. Simultaneously, it is donating $1m worth of shelf-stable seafood products to Feeding America “to ensure that everyone has access to delicious, affordable and pure nutrition inspired by the ocean.”
As a veteran who was deployed in Liberia during the Ebola outbreak in 2014, the founder and CEO of Over Easy, Kyle Maggard, knows first hand how exhausting it is on the frontlines of a pandemic, which is why he donated breakfast bars to more than 80 hospitals and medical centers across the country. As a startup that launched earlier this year, he continues to activate his limited resources to continue giving through a buy-one-get-one program on the company’s website that promises to donate a box of breakfast bars to medical workers fighting COVID-19 for each box of its oat- and egg white-based bars.
As part of Chicken of the Sea’s SeaChange initiative to support the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal to get to zero hunger by 2030, the seafood company donated more than half a million servings of canned tuna, salmon and other protein-packed products to hunger relief to communities impacted by the ongoing pandemic, including Convoy of Home, America’s Second Harvest of Coastal Georgia and South Bay Area Schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District.
While many CPG companies are struggling to keep up with increased demand, many restaurants, bars and others in food industry are struggling to survive. The Icelandic sea salt brand Saltverk is trying to redistribute the wealth by donating 25% of every purchase made via Amazon or Saltverk.com to a restaurant, café, bar or bakery of the purchaser’s choosing through April 31.
Performance Kitchen, formerly the health-forward frozen food brand Luvo, are donating 1,200 meals on behalf of its brand ambassadors football player Russell Wilson and singer Ciara to a Seattle foodbank and mentoring program as the launch of a multi-faceted giving campaign to ease the impact of COVID-19. The brand’s Crafted stores (formerly known as Eat Local) also will allow consumers to buy and donate meals, which will be matched by Performance Kitchen, to those facing pandemic-related challenged.
Over the past several weeks, the wholesale grocer Baldor Specialty Foods has delivered more than 1,000 palates of surplus food to those in need through organizations such as City Harvest and the Food Bank. It also delivered 3,000 meals to Eleven Madison Park to feed first responders.
Artisanal craft beverage brand Brooklyn Crafted is donating cases of its ginger beers to healthcare workers and school children in its local community through the #FoundersGive, Meals For Frontlines and DeRossi Global.
The meal solution brand Home Chef not only is making it easier for new cooks to get dinner on the table at home, it also is providing a way for them to help fight the negative impacts of coronavirus beyond simply staying home. It is asking customers to skip their Home Chef order for a week and instead donate the money through Home Chef to Feed America’s COVID-19 Response Fund. In addition, it donated $100,000 to Feeding America and is offering a discount to those on the frontline, including doctors, nurses, military, and hospital employees.
Frozen snack and appetizer brand Farm Rich is honoring five grocery store employees, shoppers, truckers and delivery drivers each week as part of its Snacktion Hero initiative. Anyone can nominate a hero who, if randomly selected, will be recognized on Farm Rich’s social media and have $500 donation made to a local food bank or pantry in their name. At the same time, Farm Rich is donating food to hunger relief organizations across the country.
Organic plant-based protein product manufacturer Orgain is donating 100,000 of its Clean Protein shakes to healthcare workers fighting the pandemic through its Shakes for Heroes program. Company founder and former physician Andrew Abraham says he understands how long shifts can leave healthcare providers exhausted and he hopes the donations will help provide them with “essential healthy nutrition.”
To thank grocery store employees for risking exposure to coronavirus to keep shelves stocked, the vegetable-forward frozen food company Dr. Praeger’s will reimburse their grocery bills up to $20,000 in total. Grocery store employees simply need to send their grocery receipts to grocerybill@drpraegers.com
Already dedicated to ending childhood malnutrition, mission-based bar and snack brand This Saves Lives will provide a food insecure family in the US suffering because of COVID-19 with a box of its Classic Bars, Kids Bars or new Krispy Treats for every bod purchased by shoppers using the give-back codes TODD25, KB25, RAVI25 and RYAN25. The codes will reward shoppers as well with a 25% discount.
WeWork Food Labs’ member Founders Market has organized #Foundersgive as an initiative to bring together the food and beverage community to support those on the frontlines of the pandemic. The initiative is delivering donations of healthful snacks and care packages to healthcare workers in the New York City area. Donations include more than 1 million products from local brands such as Jessie’s Nutty Cups, Grady’s Cold Brew, Pilot Kombucha, and more. Those interested in volunteering their support can visit www.foundersgive.co/get-involved. In addition, WeWork launched WeWork for good, which allows organizations actively involved in public health response to COVID-19 to use its global physical platform – even if they aren’t members.
