Chick-fil-A, Inc. has officially confirmed the realization of a major milestone in its pursuit to address community hunger i.e. successful donations of more than 200 million meals to communities in need since 2020.
According to certain reports, the company would go on to create more than 42 million meals through the Chick-fil-A Shared Table® program, which makes it possible for local Owner-Operators to donate surplus food to hunger relief nonprofits. As of today, more than 2,500 Chick-fil-A® restaurants participate in the program to donate things like leftover biscuits, nuggets, and prepared items to local nonprofits. These nonprofits incorporate the donate food into meals, such as chicken parmesan, chicken, vegetable stir-fry, and breakfast casserole.
“In cities across the U.S. and Canada, nearly every locally owned and operated Chick-fil-A restaurant has stepped up to serve their communities through Chick-fil-A Shared Table, donating millions of meals collectively,” said Brent Fielder, Vice President of Global Impact at Chick-fil-A, Inc. “As food insecurity continues to rise, Chick-fil-A Shared Table is a powerful reminder that when we come together with purpose, generosity multiplies, and lives are impacted.”
Next up, we must expand upon how each time a new Restaurant opens, Chick-fil-A, Inc. donates $25,000 to a local food bank in partnership with Second Harvest in Canada or Feeding America, the company’s longstanding U.S. partner in the movement to end hunger. In fact, since 2020, Chick-fil-A, Inc. has donated more than $19 million to celebrate new Restaurant openings.
To go along with that, the snacking giant now plans on investing more than $4 million to support hunger relief efforts across the U.S. This includes donations to Feeding America to provide more meals, sponsoring a food packaging line with Convoy of Hope, and awarding grants to help local nonprofit organizations support hunger relief efforts.
Bringing weightage to Chick-fil-A’s efforts would be a piece of fact that, going by the available details, over 295 million people presently experience food insecurity, thus marking an increase of almost 14 million people compared to 2023.
On top of that, data published by Feeding America also estimates that 47 million people in America alone face food insecurity, including 14 million children.
Among other things, it ought to be acknowledged that, leveraging collective efforts of local Owner-Operators, Restaurant Team Members, and more than 1,500 community partners, Chick-fil-A’s commitment also includes diverting food from landfills, with more than 61.6 million pounds of food waste diverted by Chick-fil-A, Inc. and Chick-fil-A restaurants since 2020.
Founded in 1967, Chick-fil-A’s rise up the ranks stems from providing freshly-prepared food, signature hospitality, as well as its unique franchise model. The scale of its operations can be further understood once you consider the company has more than 200,000 Team Members employed by local Owner-Operators in more than 3,000 restaurants across the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico.
Not just that, Chick-fil-A is also, at present, the third largest quick-service restaurant company in the United States.
“Everyone deserves access to fresh, nourishing food, yet hunger exists in plain sight. It affects tens of millions of community members who simply want the same thing we all want for ourselves: a chance to thrive,” said Claire Babineaux-Fontenot, CEO of Feeding America. “I’m grateful Chick-fil-A shares our vision to end community hunger, together.”
