ready willing - Darden Restaurants

47%of the membersof householdsserved bySecond HarvestarechildrenIt’s the ultimate paradox of an affluentsociety. Each year, some 14 billion poundsof food are sent to landfills in America.Meanwhile, nearly 37 million Americans(including 14 million children) are at risk ofhunger. Darden, like most restaurantcompanies, grappled for years with theproblem of food waste – struggling with theuncomfortable dilemma ofthrowing away food that wasperfectly good and safe toeat, yet, for a varietyof reasons, couldn’tbe sold to guests.That’s why Darden was so pleased to partnerwith the Food Donation Connection, anational network that works with restaurantsand other food service companies todistribute high-quality, prepared foods tohunger-relief organizations across the UnitedStates. A pilot program that began in 2003grew into a companywide effort the followingyear and became known as the DardenHarvest program. In fiscal 2010, Darden’s1,800 restaurants donated 8.8 million poundsof food through the Darden Harvest programto local food banks throughout the country.One of the recipient food banks is SecondHarvest Food Bank of Central Floridalocated in Orlando, Florida. Since 1983,Second Harvest has remained faithful to itsmission to fight hunger. By helping to closethe gap between the community’s needfor donated food and the amount of foodavailable, it is a mission that toucheshundreds of thousands of lives each year.Over the past 27 years, more than 243million pounds of food and grocery itemshave reached needy people in CentralFlorida through the work of the Food Bank.The Food Bank’s Food Rescue Programpartners with the Darden Harvest program.Refrigerated trucks pick up prepared fooditems from various Darden restaurants anddeliver them to non-profit agencies servingonsite meals for needy people. During theirlast fiscal year ending June 30, 2010, morethan 182,000 pounds of food were donatedto the Food Bank by Darden’s Harvestprogram. That translates to more than242,000 meals for Central Floridiansneeding their help.In addition, the Darden RestaurantsFoundation provides support for SecondHarvest’s Hi-Five Food Pack Program. TheHi-Five Food Pack Program serves chronicallyhungry children by providing them withtake home food packs. The packs containnutritious, easy-to-open, shelf-stable foodsand are distributed to children at elementaryschools. The program provides nutritiousfood for the children to eat when school isnot in session – Saturday and Sunday. Theprogram was piloted in October 2006 at twoschools and has grown to 14 schools as oflast year. During the 2008-09 academic year,25,745 nutritious Hi-Five food packs weresent home with hungry children. Theprogram name comes from the positivefeeling of giving a “high five,” as well asthe recommended “five servings a day”of fruits and vegetables. The Hi-Five FoodPack Program is reaching low-incomechildren in Central Florida in SecondHarvest’s efforts to end childhood hunger.readyandwillingto nourishSecond Harvest Food Bank of Central FloridaG O O D N E I G H B O R G R A N T S / 1 1