NEWS ADVISORY
LOVELAND, Colo. — June — The Food Bank for Larimer County received this month a $10,000 grant from Safeway Foundation’s Nourishing Neighbors Program to combat hunger during the summer months and after school hours when school-aged children face higher rates of food insecurity. The grant is part of the “Fight Hunger, Serve Hope” initiative from Safeway’s private label brand O Organics and will be a crucial part in helping the Lunch Lab vehicles distribute no-cost meals to kids.
“We’re excited to partner with Safeway to help improve nutrition among low-income children and families, especially during the summer and after school hours when they are most vulnerable,” said Food Bank CEO Amy Pezzani. “Together with Safeway, we’ll continue to tackle the ongoing food insecurity issues in our community.”
The Food Bank’s Lunch Lab vehicles are a critical part of making sure that children have enough to eat throughout the summer, when access to free school lunch is no longer available. With roughly 12,000 children facing food insecurity across the county, the need for these nutritious meals is substantial. Throughout the summer, the Food Bank expects to prepare more than 41,000 lunches for kids. The Food Bank is grateful for the chance to work together with community partners, like Safeway, to fight hunger.
“At Safeway, we are committed to making a difference in the lives of children facing food insecurity, and we’re pleased to partner with the Food Bank to fund grants dedicated to providing healthy meals for at-risk youth throughout the summer,” said Kristine Staaf, the Denver division spokeswoman for Safeway and Albertsons. “Nourishing Neighbors, together with partners like the Food Bank for Larimer County, is making our neighborhoods better for children in need.”
Safeway’s private label brand O Organics has donated a total of $7 million in 2024 to the Nourishing Neighbors Program to fund grants dedicated to enhancing school breakfasts, providing weekend breakfast food, backpack programs with food to take home, summer breakfast meals and many other breakfast-related programs. This follows a 2023 donation of $7 million to fund similar grants for at-risk youth.
Nourishing Neighbors is a charitable program of the Safeway Foundation. The program aims to eradicate hunger in America by keeping food banks stocked and supporting meal distribution programs at schools. In 2023, along with the Albertsons Companies Foundation, the company contributed over $200 million in food and financial support, including over $40 million through the Nourishing Neighbors Program, to ensure at-risk children, adults, seniors and families have access to the food they need to thrive.
