In the fall of 2024, Rich’s made a significant contribution to the fight against hunger with a $150,000 product donation to Freestore Foodbank in Cincinnati, Ohio. But the giving didn’t end there. Rich’s coordinated a team of volunteers to spend an afternoon working at the Bea Taylor Market, one of two community pantries operated by Freestore. The volunteers also delivered a $10,000 donation from Rich Family Foundation to support Freestore’s culinary skills training program. 

Representatives from Kroger were invited to participate in the volunteer experience as part of an exclusive two-day event designed to give the leading national grocer a closer look at the people, expertise and values behind the Rich’s brand.

As a supplier, Rich’s has partnered with Kroger on the 10x20x30 initiative which brings together more than 10 of the world’s largest food retailers and challenges each one to engage at least 20 suppliers in the quest to halve food loss and waste by 2030.

When Rob learned that the Freestore Foodbank had opened a facility that could accept frozen goods, he knew that would be game-changing in terms of the impact Rich’s could make. Inventory specialists at Rich’s helped Rob identify 2500 cases of SeaPak frozen shrimp that were eligible for donation; an entire truckload of frozen products that could help feed those in need while also reducing the amount of product that would eventually be deemed as waste. 

“It was really important to invite our colleagues from Kroger to participate in this effort toward the 10x20x30 initiative, and to experience the difference our ongoing partnership makes in the community by volunteering at the foodbank,” explained Rob.

In addition to donating $150,000 worth of frozen seafood to help stock the market shelves and make meals for the community, Rich’s also covered the costs of packing the goods onto a refrigerated truck at Rich’s manufacturing facility in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, and delivering the donation directly to the Freestore distribution center in Cincinnati.

Then, on October 9, 2024, four associates from Rich’s Consumer Brands & In-store Bakery divisions, along with two Kroger representatives, spent an afternoon at the Bea Taylor Market stocking shelves, bagging free groceries and helping families shop in the pantry.

The Bea Taylor Market and the Liberty Market are two choice pantries at the heart of Freestore’s programming in Cincinnati.  The markets, which are set-up much like a regular grocery store, offer relief to families struggling to meet their nutritional needs. These two pantry locations alone served 4,583,381 meals to 28,995 households last year. 

“On behalf of the Freestore Foodbank, we would like to extend our heartfelt gratitude to Rich Products for the generous food donation, the monetary donation, and to your staff for volunteering in our Bea Taylor Market,” said Trish Rayner, Chief Development Officer, VP of External Affairs. “Your support helps provide much-needed nourishment to individuals and families in our community, ensuring they have access to healthy meals. The impact of your kindness will resonate with those who rely on our services, and your contribution is making a real difference in their lives. Thank you for standing with us as we work to alleviate hunger and bring hope to those in our community.”

The Freestore Foodbank supports the Tristate area including Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana, and is a partner foodbank of Feeding America, offering food, connection and hope. According to Freestore’s 2024 annual impact report, one in five community members are at risk of hunger, and 254,380 people in the Tristate area are food insecure. From June 2023 to June 2024, Freestore provided 47 million meals to their community. 

In addition to the markets, Freestore meets the meal gap across the Tristate through 12 other avenues, including mobile markets, school pantries, senior boxes, order ahead meals, direct delivery in partnership with Amazon, summer programs and so much more.

On October 10, more than a dozen Kroger representatives joined Rich’s team for a deep dive into macro food trends lead by Amanda Buonopane, Rich’s Senior Manager, Strategic Insights. The day included a 5-course meal featuring some of the latest menu trends, a look inside consumer shopping behaviors, and an ideation session in partnership with Datassential, a global leader in food and beverage intelligence and long-time partner of Rich’s. The day concluded with a break from the boardroom and a chance for the teams to engage in a round of golf. 

“The event was a great opportunity for our two companies to partner together to support our local Freestore Foodbank with much needed resources, food and funding,” said Sean Brislin, Director of Merchandising, Kroger. “Joining together for a day of giving back, sampling innovative concepts, and playing a little golf was time very well spent. We look forward to the next opportunity to partner together to make a difference.”

Feedback from the other Kroger representatives in attendance was also overwhelmingly positive, with unanimous agreement that the event was both worthwhile and impactful, and something everyone would like to participate in again. The volunteer and charitable giving component was the most highly rated aspect of the event, according to a post-event survey.   

“We learned a lot from this experience,” concluded Rob. “From coordinating the logistics of the frozen food donation to volunteering in the market. It really emphasized the need in the community while challenging and inspiring us to make an even bigger impact on people and the planet through food donations and eliminating food waste.” 

The team of volunteers from Kroger included Brandy Hanger and Tameka Carr, and Rob McCoy, John Pollock, Kim Krauhs, Michael Crawford and Melinda Dunn from Rich Products. The following Rich’s associates were invaluable supports to the customer event and food donation: Shannon Gilreath, Alvino Battistoni, Robin Bjorn, Amanda Adams, Adam Hutchinson, Jill Jeter, Jeff Rich and Amanda Buonopane. 

To learn more about the Freestore Foodbank and contribute to their hunger relief efforts in the Tristate area, click here.