Publix Supermarkets is giving a total of $500,000 to food banks in Alabama.
The Florida-based grocery store chain recently announced the donations. They're part of $5 million Publix is giving to organizations across the Southeast in September. That's national Hunger Action Week.
Al.com reports that the grocery store's charity organization is donating $150,000 each to the Community Food Bank of Central Alabama in Birmingham and Feeding the Gulf Coast in Theodore and $100,000 each to the Food Bank of North Alabama in Huntsville and the Montgomery Area Food Bank.
"Millions of people in the Southeast — many of them children and seniors — may not know where they will find their next meal. Together, we can help change that," said Kelly Williams-Puccio, executive director of Publix Super Markets Charities.
"We are proud to continue our commitment to feeding communities across the Southeast and offer dignity and nourishment to our neighbors in need," she said.
One in eight people across the country struggles with hunger, including more than 9 million in the Southeast, Publix executives said, citing federal data.
"Every day, food banks in the Feeding America network are on the ground helping children and families who need it most, but we know that we can't end hunger alone," Claire Babineaux-Fontenot, CEO of Feeding America, said in a statement. "We are grateful to Publix and Publix Super Markets Charities for their long-standing commitment to fighting hunger in communities across the Southeast. Your donations will have a tremendous impact on the lives of people we serve."
The grocery store company also donated funds to food banks in Virginia, Tennessee, South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia and Florida.
