BJ’s FEEDING COMMUNITIES PROGRAM

Launched in 2011 in partnership with Feeding America® and their food banks, as well as local member agencies, BJ’s Feeding Communities Program is a company-wide effort to help end hunger in our communities.

Now instead of discarding good, wholesome and nutritious unsold food, our Clubs are donating millions of pounds of food each year — including fresh produce, baked goods, frozen meats and fish, and cheese — to help support 42 food banks in the 15 states BJ’s serves.

See How the Donation Process Works

For more on BJ’s Feeding Communities, please read our Frequently Asked Questions

ADDITIONAL EFFORTS TO HELP END HUNGER IN OUR COMMUNITIES

In addition to BJ’s Feeding Communities Program, BJ’s recent efforts to help alleviate hunger in the communities we serve include:

• In 2011, BJ’s launched an online campaign called “Tell Hunger to Hit the Road” to raise awareness of food banks’ needs. Members liking our Facebook page helped generate $210,000 in donations to help cover gas and other costs associated with transporting food.


• In 2011, $150,559 in BJ’s Charitable Foundation grants provided support to 16 local hunger-relief agencies and programs. See the full 2011 Grant List.

Q. What is BJ’s Feeding Communities Program?

A. BJ’s Feeding Communities Program is BJ’s Wholesale Club’s company-wide initiative to help end hunger. In partnership with Feeding America, the nation’s largest food bank network, BJ’s Clubs donate unsold but still wholesome and nutritious produce, meat, poultry and fish to food banks and local agencies within the BJ’s footprint.

Q. How much food will be donated?

A. BJ’s estimates it will donate 10 million pounds of frozen meat, poultry and fish, as well as fresh produce and cheese, annually.

Q. How many BJ’s Clubs are participating with the Feeding Communities Program?

A. All of BJ’s Clubs are participating. Most Clubs donate food to their local Feeding America partner food banks and local member agencies. In Rhode Island, BJ’s has established partnerships with four local hunger-relief agencies who handle the distribution of food donations to those in need.

Q. Is BJ’s helping food banks in any other way?

A. Yes. Transporting food from BJ’s Clubs to local Feeding America food banks — and then out to hunger-relief agencies and the individuals who need it — can present logistical issues and may be cost-prohibitive. That's why BJ’s launched the “Tell Hunger to Hit the Road” campaign to raise funds that help defray the costs associated with distributing this much-needed food to the food banks and hunger-prevention agencies in our communities.

Q. What was the “Tell Hunger to Hit the Road” campaign?

A. From November 1st through December 31st, 2011, BJ’s invited the Facebook community to help us provide additional funding for logistical support to food banks through BJ’s “Tell Hunger to Hit the Road” campaign. For every new “like” or "share" BJ’s received during this period, we added another $1 to our donation to Feeding America to assist with the transportation costs associated with delivering food to the areas in need.

Thanks to enthusiastic participation from fans of our partner food banks and the entire BJ’s Facebook community, we were able to donate an additional $60,000 on top of BJ’s commitment of $150,000. Altogether, Feeding America received a total donation of $210,000 toward transportation costs.

 

Q. How were BJ’s $150,000 donation and the $60,000 "Tell Hunger to Hit the Road" donation divided among participating food pantries?

A. The total $210,000 donation was divided equally between all of BJ’s Clubs, with each Club donating its portion to the local Feeding America Food Bank(s) it supports.