Image by Rosy / Bad Homburg / Germany from Pixabay

Walmart and Sam’s Club Fight Hunger. Spark Change Campaign Returns to Central and Southern Illinois to Help People Facing Hunger Taking place in stores, clubs and online, the 12th annual campaign supports local hunger relief efforts.

For the 12th straight year, all U.S. Walmart stores and Sam’s Club locations are launching the Fight Hunger. Spark Change. campaign, including right here in
Central and Southern Illinois.

The goal of the annual cause marketing campaign is to provide people facing hunger with access to the food and resources they say they need to thrive. Here’s how it works:

The campaign will run in stores and online from March 1-March 31, with three ways for shoppers to participate:

– By donating at check-out in stores or clubs or round up at Walmart.com and the Walmart app.

– By purchasing participating products* in-store or online at Walmart.com or SamsClub.com. For every purchase of a participating product, the supplier will donate the monetary equivalent** of at least one meal ($0.10) on behalf of a Feeding America partner food bank at Walmart and five meals ($0.50) at Sam’s Club, up to applicable limits. See specially marked packages for full details.

– By donating at Feeding America’s Fight Hunger. Spark Change. campaign donation site at either www.FeedingAmerica.org/Walmart or www.FeedingAmerica.org/SamsClub

Since its inception in 2014, the campaign has generated more than $206 million and helped secure 2 billion meals* for the Feeding America® network of local food banks.

“We are so grateful for the Fight Hunger. Spark Change. campaign with Walmart, Sam’s Club and Feeding America,” Pam Molitoris, executive director of Central Illinois Foodbank, said. “The ongoing generosity of our communities across central and southern Illinois shine through every donation made. When you give, you’re directly supporting your neighbors through your local food bank, helping families put food on the table and offering hope in difficult times. Together, we are building stronger, more resilient communities. Every contribution brings us closer to a future where everyone has enough to eat, and that is something of which we can be proud.”

Everyone needs nutritious food to thrive, and in every community in America, people are working hard to provide for themselves and their families. Yet in 2023, 47.4 million people—1 in 7 people—experienced food insecurity in the U.S.

Those are the highest numbers in a decade, underscoring the need for more charitable food assistance in Springfield and beyond.

“For the past 20 years, Feeding America, Walmart and Sam’s Club have worked together to fight hunger and help people live better in the communities we serve,” said Julie Gehrki, president, Walmart Foundation and senior vice president, philanthropy at Walmart. “During the Fight Hunger. Spark Change. campaign, we invite our customers and members to join us in providing access to food for our neighbors by supporting Central Illinois Foodbank.” 

The 22 participating suppliers for Walmart include: B&G Foods, Inc., Bush Brothers & Company, The Coca-Cola Company, Conagra Foods, Dole Packaged Foods, LLC, General Mills, Hershey Salty Snacks, Kellanova, Keurig Dr. Pepper, Kodiak, Kraft Heinz, Lipton Tea, Ben’s Original, Materne, Mondelez International, Olipop, Pepsi-Cola Advertising & Marketing, Inc., Hidden Valley Original Ranch, The Hain Celestial Group, WK Kellogg Co, Unilever and Utz Quality Foods

The seven participating suppliers for Sam’s Club include: Ferrero USA, Kellanova, Kodiak, Kraft Heinz, General Mills, Nestlé and Unilever For more information, visit: feedingamerica.org/campaigns/fight-hunger-spark-change *Currently, $1 helps provide at least 10 meals secured by Feeding America® on behalf of local
partner food banks.

** For every purchase of a participating product, the supplier will donate the monetary equivalent of at least one meal ($0.10) on behalf of a Feeding America partner food bank at Walmart and five meals ($0.50) at Sam’s Club, up to applicable limits. See specially marked packages for full details.