Stop & Shop Donates $215,000 to Island Harvest Food Bank

Earlier today, Stop & Shop joined Randi Shubin Dresner, president and CEO of Island Harvest Food Bank, and presented a check for over $215,000 to Island Harvest at its Healthy Harvest Farm on the campus of Sisters of St. Joseph. Stop & Shop’s number one charitable pillar is to fight hunger in its region and was honored to donate over $215,000 to Island Harvest in an effort to help food insecure Long Islanders. The donation is part of a larger $2.4 million donation from Stop & Shop to eight Feeding America® food banks across New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut to support programs that fight against food insecurity

The donation from Stop & Shop came from a combination of its in-store ‘Food for Friends’ campaign, which ran from May 5th to June 4th, and the Stop & Shop Family Foundation. Over $65,000 was raised through the ‘Food for Friends’ campaign and $150,000 was donated from the Stop & Shop Family Foundation to support Island Harvest’s Youth Produce Project and Nutrition Pathway’s Program.

The Island Harvest Youth Produce Project began operation in 2013 through a long-standing partnership with the Stop & Shop Family Foundation. Through this initiative, low-income children and their families receive weekly boxes containing three varieties of fresh fruits and vegetables. Island Harvest partners with nine Head Start locations across Long Island to reach low-income children and their families. Through this holistic hunger-relief initiative, children and families who may lack the resources to access healthy foods are taught how to properly incorporate the produce that they receive into their daily meals.

The Youth Produce Project distributes a variety of fresh produce to a minimum of 490 children per week, providing more than 78,000 pounds of healthy produce and supplementing 65,000 meals.

“As a major grocery retailer serving Long Island, we have seen firsthand how food insecurity and a lack of access to fresh and healthy food can negatively impact our community members, especially children,” said Gordon Reid, President at Stop & Shop. “We are proud to donate over $215,000 to Island Harvest to better help our Long Island neighbors fight hunger and enable more children to gain greater access to fresh fruits and vegetables.”

According to the USDA, more than 34 million people, including 9 million children, in the United States are food insecure. In addition, the COVID-19 pandemic has increased food insecurity among families with children and communities of color, who already faced hunger at much higher rates before the pandemic.

Island Harvest Food Bank receives very little government support and relies on the generosity of organizations like Stop & Shop. Stop & Shop’s Meat the Needs, ‘Food for Friends’ campaign, Annual Turkey Express Program, Stop & Shop Family Foundation donation, School Food Pantry Program, and direct support are a few of the many ways the company supports anti-hunger organizations in the communities it serves.

“Our long-standing partnership with Stop & Shop has made a tangible impact in the lives of our Long Island neighbors often faced with choosing to buy medicine, pay the rent, mortgage, or other obligations and buying food,” said Randi Shubin Dresner, president & CEO, Island Harvest. “Partnerships between companies like Stop & Shop and human service organizations like ours are proving to be highly beneficial in addressing some of society’s most pressing issues, including hunger and food insecurity. We are grateful for their continued caring and generosity.”

The donation of over $215,000 will allow Island Harvest to distribute more than 53,000 pounds of healthy, fresh produce to children and their families across Nassau and Suffolk counties. To learn more about Stop & Shop’s community support; visit: https://stopandshop.com/pages/our-purpose.