HelloFresh and No Kid Hungry join forces with trusted partners at distribution events and pop-up pantries across 13 regions nationwide, helping to ease the summer hunger gap.
Did you know that 13 million kids in the US currently live in homes that are food insecure? You read that correctly: 13 million children—one in five kids in the US—do not have enough food to lead a healthy life.
Childhood food insecurity only gets worse in the summer, when millions of kids lose access to the meals they receive in school. We recently conducted a survey and found that 41% of parents struggle to provide food for their household when kids are out of school.
“Far too many children in America are living with food insecurity, and those families experience the daily stress of wondering where their next meal is coming from,” said Jeff Yorzyk, Sr. Director of Sustainability for HelloFresh North America. “We know that when kids miss meals, it creates long-term health issues—both physical and mental, which sets up a future that none of us wants.”
That’s why this summer, HelloFresh hit the road with No Kid Hungry to join the fight against childhood hunger via the 13 for 13 Million campaign, an effort to raise awareness of the issue and provide critical support to parents and families in need. With the help of several trusted partners, we hosted distribution events and pop-up pantries in 13 regions across the country to help ease the burden of the summer hunger gap.
Parents are making sacrifices every day to feed their families.
“Parents have told me that they ‘have to hide food in the middle of the month’ to make sure there is enough to last through the end of the month, when SNAP and EBT benefits re-up,” shared Rachel Sabella, Director of No Kid Hungry New York.
These sacrifices were also found in HelloFresh’s research on childhood hunger. Among parents who struggle to provide food for everyone in their household, 42% are skipping meals themselves and 52% are cutting back on other expenses to make room in their budgets to adequately feed their children. “These are impossible choices,” adds Rachel.
Having resources boosts community morale.
Sarah O’Donnell, whose organization Tri-Town YMCA hosted a HelloFresh pantry designed to look like an open HelloFresh box, said that their young campers were “really excited about the pantry.” Many of their parents utilized the free food provided, and the campers themselves were happy to help stock the shelves and do their own part in giving back.
HelloFresh hits the road with No Kid Hungry to join the fight against childhood hunger via the 13 for 13 Million campaign.
At a 13 for 13 Million distribution event in New Jersey, Newark Public Schools Superintendent Roger León said that “we’re not just sharing meals; we’re sharing the promise of a brighter, healthier future for our community.”
Families need systemic change in addition to immediate relief.
Hunger is a complicated issue, driven by low wages, the high cost of healthy foods and a lack of affordable housing, among other things. No Kid Hungry champions systemic change to address these issues, through advocacy, fundraising and community engagement.
Join us in the fight against hunger by giving to No Kid Hungry. Your support will help No Kid Hungry fund meal programs all over the country and help advocate for policies that will help kids get the meals they need.
