Second Harvest Heartland Receives $50,000 Grant from the Walmart Foundation to Support SNAP Education and Outreach

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Jul 24, 2017, 07:00 ET

ST. PAUL, Minn., July 24, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Second Harvest Heartland today announced a $50,000 grant from the Walmart Foundation to help fight hunger in the Twin Cities area through Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) education and outreach. SNAP is the largest federal assistance program working to fight hunger in America. More than 70% of SNAP benefits go to households with children. Yet, 17 percent of Americans eligible for SNAP currently do not receive this benefit. Only 41 percent of eligible seniors are enrolled.

With this grant, Second Harvest Heartland hopes to scale access to SNAP among eligible households, with particular emphasis on reaching seniors, families with children, and other vulnerable populations. Funds will be utilized to offer one-to-one assistance to households eligible for SNAP.

"No one should worry about where they will find their next meal. Every day, Second Harvest Heartland helps to provide food to the 1 in 10 people who struggle with hunger in Minnesota. But we can't end hunger alone. Programs like SNAP help to fill a critical gap for people in need," said Rob Zeaske, Chief Executive Officer.

SNAP provides more than nutrition assistance; it helps improve families' overall well-being. With lower grocery bills, people are better able to pay for other basic necessities—rent or mortgages, medical expenses, utilities and transportation. According to the USDA's Economic Research Service Report, SNAP is critical to moving families into long-term food security.

Walmart and the Walmart Foundation provide donations of both food and funds to the Feeding America nationwide network of 200 food banks. In Minnesota, Walmart stores donate millions of pounds of food to Second Harvest Heartland each year, and raise funds for regional hunger relief. Additionally, Walmart employees volunteer at local food bank facilities throughout the year.

For more information about what Second Harvest Heartland is doing to fight hunger, visit www.2harvest.org.

About Second Harvest Heartland
Second Harvest Heartland is one of the nation's largest, most efficient and most innovative hunger relief organizations. Second Harvest Heartland provides an average of 75 percent of all food distributed by its food shelf partners, and in 2016, provided more than 80 million meals to nearly 1,000 food shelves, pantries and other partner programs serving 59 counties in Minnesota and western Wisconsin. Second Harvest Heartland leads through innovation, finding efficient, effective solutions to connect the full resources of our community with our hungry neighbors. For more information, visit 2harvest.org or call 651.484.5117.

SOURCE Second Harvest Heartland