Walmart Announces Fighting Hunger Together

Today Walmart announced an initiative to fight hunger by donating a total of 2 million dollars to some of the communities hit the hardest by the downturn in the economy. We are proud to support this campaign not only because we are Walmart Moms, but also because we know this effort turns into real meals for families in real need.

Walmart is not doing this alone. Along with four of the nation’s largest food companies — General Mills, ConAgra Foods, Kraft Foods and Kellogg Company — the Walmart Foundation, The Band Perry and Kimberly Williams-Paisley, they launched the campaign that will enable millions of Americans the opportunity to get involved by shopping at Walmart or visiting the company’s  Facebook page today through April 30.

From the press release:

Spring traditionally brings a decrease in donations to food banks, leaving them unable to meet the needs of nearly 49 million Americans who at some point this year will be uncertain where their next meal will come from. To help bridge this gap, Walmart is inviting customers to visit one of its 3,854 Walmart stores and Neighborhood Markets nationwide and purchase products from participating suppliers that will help provide meals to families struggling with hunger. In-store signs will help direct customers to participating products and on-package labels will advise customers how to generate meals by entering product codes online, sharing a hashtag on Twitter or scanning a QR code.

Through this effort, more than 42 million meals will be donated to Feeding America food banks and Action for Healthy Kids.

I tested the app as soon as it went live and let me tell you it´s so ridiculously easy to use. From the Facebook app you can vote for one of 200 communities hardest hit by unemployment and do it in under three minutes.

Step #1: Log on to your Facebook account and visit the Fighting Hunger app here.

Step #2: Click the button that says: “Select a State.” A drop down menu will appear and then click on your state.

Step #3: The next screen will bring you to a page with a list of the communities in your state. Select the one you want to vote for.

Step #4: Your communities voting page will appear and you just click the large button that says: “Vote and Share.”

Step #5: Once voted, you have the option of sharing this with your Facebook friends, Tweet for support or email your friends to let them know to vote for your community.

Along the way, you’ll see screens with information on how you can donate or volunteer with hunger fighting organizations in your local communities.

You can go back every day to vote and share. The community with the most votes will receive $1 million to help fight hunger. The next 20 communities will each receive $50,000 for hunger relief.

Want to help us spread the word on Twitter? Click to tweet this: Walmart announces campaign to #FightHunger in communities w highest rates of unemployment. 2million 2 b donated! Vote here ow.ly/aaaxh

Disclosure: As part of the Walmart Moms program, SpanglishBaby will receive compensation to facilitate this post. As always, all opinions are our own.