Disneyland Donates To Food Bank Amid Coronavirus Shutdown

ANAHEIM, CA — With Disneyland closes their gates due to new coronavirus concerns, the cast members behind the scenes are preparing to make a massive food donation to a local food bank.

These are unprecedented times, with theme parks across southern California evaluating whether or not to stay open. Disneyland Resort led the way, along with others, to decide to err on the side of caution both for their cast members and guests, doing their part to socially distance and keep coronavirus, also known as COVID-19, at bay.

"The Disneyland Resort has an ongoing commitment to reducing food waste," a spokesperson said. The park has selected Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County for the donations of the excess food stores.

Second Harvest Food Bank's mission is to end hunger in Orange County, and Disneyland Resort has plenty to share with them. Second Harvest Bank spoke with Patch, saying they were grateful that this nutritious food was being made available by Disneyland to feed those in need.

Harald Herrmann, CEO of Second Harvest Food Bank reflected on the depth and breadth of the donation.

"A donation such as this to Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County flows directly into the hands of our pantry partners, who in turn work to provide it as quickly as possible to those at risk of hunger in Orange County," Herrmann said. "We are preparing to marshal our partners to distribute this donation as soon as possible and will bring in additional Food Bank trucks or partners as needed to accommodate it."

On Friday, the excess inventory of dairy, fruit, vegetables, packaged goods and banquet meals were packed up and were getting ready to be sent.

During the temporary closure of @Disneyland, the resort will donate excess food to Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County. Details here: https://t.co/FFAiRMQ5qB pic.twitter.com/Phl9jpU2Qi

— Disney Parks (@DisneyParks) March" class="redactor-linkify-object">https://twitter.com/DisneyPark... 13, 2020

With the growing health crisis and a national state of emergency, it is difficult to fathom the future needs, but one thing is certain: the needs of the people will continue to be met by the food bank.

"We are experiencing an increase in demand for food due to the impact of coronavirus on the business community," Hermmann said.

The Food Bank anticipates needing 37 truckloads of shelf-stable food in the coming days and weeks, and depends on donors to help address the anticipated need.

Since 2014, the Disneyland Resort has operated a food donation program through which prepared, unserved food from select locations is regularly donated to support those in need within the local community.

This program is in addition to the food scraps diversion program, which also supports our environmental efforts in reducing food waste, a spokesperson said.

Patch has reached out to Second Harvest Food Bank and will update this report when a response is received.

In 2019, the Disneyland Resort donated over 20,000 meals to Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County through the food donation program, and Disney VoluntEARS regularly volunteer there, supporting the mission of ending hunger.