BJ’s Charitable Foundation Donates to Feeding America

BJ’s Wholesale Club announced a $1 million donation from its foundation to Feeding America, the nation’s largest domestic hunger-relief organization. BJ’s donation will support local food banks on the East Coast by providing infrastructure to support growth and resources to handle additional perishable food.

This donation supports the BJ’s Charitable Foundation’s mission to bring a fresh approach to nourishing communities and helping families thrive.

Since 2009, BJ’s has provided ongoing support to Feeding America through the BJ’s Charitable Foundation and BJ’s Feeding Communities® program, helping local food banks successfully expand their programs to reach wider and more diverse audiences. BJ’s $1 million donation to Feeding America is the foundation’s largest single donation to any organization to date.

“BJ’s is committed to nourishing our communities and helping families thrive, and we’re thrilled to support Feeding America with our foundation’s largest donation ever,” said Chris Baldwin, president and CEO, BJ’s Wholesale Club. “Every family should have access to fresh, nutritious food, and BJ’s is proud to partner with Feeding America to help make this a reality.”

In the United States, 72 billion pounds of food is wasted every year in the U.S, according to ReFED, a nonprofit committed to reducing U.S. food waste. This loss occurs at every stage of the food production and distribution system—from farmers to packers and shippers, to manufacturers and retailers.

“There is enough food produced in this country to feed every person who struggles with hunger in America, and sadly much of it never makes it to the dinner table,” said Andy Wilson, chief development officer of Feeding America. “Unfortunately, many perishables are wasted because an inability or lack of bandwidth to rescue and redistribute the massive amount of food that’s discarded. Thanks to BJ’s Charitable Foundation, we can grow our infrastructure and help ensure more families have access to healthy meals before nutritious, fresh food heads to landfills.”

In addition to capacity building grants from the BJ’s Charitable Foundation, BJ’s has secured over 50 million pounds of donated food, including fresh produce, frozen meats and fish, baked goods and dairy items, and helped deliver 13 million meals to neighbors in need through the BJ’s Feeding Communities program.