Feeding San Diego Receives $50,000 Grant From Albertsons, Vons, Pavilions Foundation’s Nourishing Neighbors and O Organics to Support School Pantry Program
Funds support longstanding program that provides nutritious food to local students and families at schools across the county during the school year and summer months
Feeding San Diego has received a $50,000 grant from Albertsons, Vons, Pavilions 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 the company’s private label brand O Organics and will be used to support the School Pantry Program. Feeding San Diego’s largest program targeting childhood hunger, school pantries are pop-up food distributions that happen onsite at elementary, middle, and high schools across the county once or twice a month. Parents receive fresh produce and pantry staples to support families after school and on weekends. This summer, some school pantries remain open to support families with nutritional needs during the break.
“We are thankful for Albertsons, Vons and Pavilions Foundation’s partnership to help improve nutrition among low-income children and families, especially during the summer and after school hours when they need the help,” said Ali Colbran, senior director of development at Feeding San Diego. “During the summer months, kids lose access to nutritious meals provided at school as part of the Universal School Meals program. This creates an urgent need for food resources for families who rely on school meals to feed their children.”
A new study from Feeding America, the national organization of which Feeding San Diego is a partner food bank, revealed that just over 100,000 kids in San Diego County are experiencing food insecurity. With high inflation and cost of living here in San Diego County, many families are having to make impossible choices between essentials like food, utilities, gas, and healthcare.
“At Albertsons, Vons and Pavilions, we are committed to making a difference in the lives of children facing food insecurity, and we’re pleased to partner with Feeding San Diego to fund grants dedicated to providing healthy meals for youth in need throughout the summer,” said Kevin Curry, division president of Albertsons, Vons and Pavilions. “Nourishing Neighbors, together with partners like Feeding San Diego, is making our neighborhoods better for children in need.”
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 youth experiencing food insecurity.
Nourishing Neighbors is a charitable program of the Albertsons, Vons, Pavilions 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 national 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.
