As the world's largest food and beverage company, we can play an important role in supporting access to food. Food insecurity is a real challenge across the U.S., and by leveraging the power and passion of our people, we address hunger through large-scale national meal packs to neighborhood-level farming partnerships and a variety of initiatives in between. For example, over the last decade, we've donated the equivalent of 120 million meals to Feeding America.
But providing immediate food assistance is just one piece of the puzzle. We're also working to facilitate long-term solutions focused on economic opportunity, built around creative connections and community building, in the places where we live and work.
This brings us to Cleveland, Ohio, where we recently teamed up with Rid-All Green Partnership, a vibrant urban farm, to help increase access to food, educate the public on more sustainable farming practices, and unlock career pathways for local and next gen farmers in under-resourced neighborhoods throughout Cleveland.
See it in Action: A Deep Dive with Vox
I recently sat down with Vox to explain more about how Nestlé is exploring new ways to leverage the power of our employees and support stronger community food systems, including our work with Rid-All.
Through a combination of financial support and employee volunteer efforts, our collaboration with Rid-All connects Nestlé employees with community members and focuses on implementing urban farming initiatives to plant and grow fresh produce.
Rid-All also offers yoga classes, veteran programs, and other services that provide multiple benefits for the community. Local farmers, youth, veterans, and community groups in the Cleveland area can grow food production skills by participating in urban agriculture trainings and environmental programs.
Our employees are volunteering their time over the next several months to help transform a “hoop house” into a fully functional 42-bed growing space called the Nestlé Neighborhood Community Farm. It will be used to grow foods such as leafy greens and fruits throughout the year and to teach youth about food, including where it comes from and how it grows, and the importance of having fresh food options in the community.
This project is just one of many ways we're working to strengthen community food systems across the US.
Supporting Food Systems at Scale – and Across the Globe
