As Hunger Action Month closed and October campaigns kicked off, grocers nationwide announced food donations, fundraising campaigns and community grants. Here’s a roundup of recent giving from the industry.
H-E-B
H-E-B has strengthened its partnerships with food banks in the Feeding Texas network, setting up near-daily pickups of fresh produce, proteins and prepared meals from its stores. The more frequent collections have more than doubled both the variety of items and the total pounds shared with families in need; this summer alone, food banks and partnering agencies picked up more than 9 million pounds of food from H-E-B stores. The 18 partnering food banks send refrigerated trucks to preserve freshness, allowing donations of shorter-shelf-life items such as deli meats and cheeses, fresh-cut fruit and Meal Simple prepared meals.
Nearly four decades ago, H-E-B was among the first retailers in the nation to launch a perishable food donation program. Since then, it has donated more than 1.5 billion pounds of food to food banks in Texas and Mexico, including nearly 41 million pounds last year. The donations come as more than 6 million Texans face food insecurity, according to Feeding Texas. The retailer’s Help End Hunger checkout donation campaign runs through Oct. 6, benefiting Feeding Texas food banks.
“At H-E-B, we are passionate about taking care of Texans and work hard to provide fresh, nutritious food to organizations whose mission is to help families avoid hunger,” said Daniel Flores, senior manager of public affairs and hunger relief.
Tops Friendly Markets
Tops Friendly Markets launched the 15th season of its Tops in Education program with double rewards throughout October, letting enrolled shoppers earn up to 10 percent back for their designated schools when buying participating own-brand products with their BonusPlus card. Since the program began in 2012, Tops has donated more than $2.2 million to over 1,000 participating schools.
“Whether it’s funding for field trips and school dances, providing extra classroom supplies, or supporting youth sports, we’ve seen firsthand how the supplemental funding from TIE has been a true blessing for our school districts,” said Courtney Mailhot, manager of community relations.
The Williamsville, New York-based grocer also brought back its annual Free Gas & Groceries campaign, running through Oct. 10 at select locations, where shoppers can buy a $1 ticket for a chance to win $5,000 in gas and groceries while supporting Upstate Golisano Children’s Hospital. The campaign has raised nearly $357,000 since its inception. And in honor of National Hispanic Heritage Month, Tops and its vendor partners presented donations totaling more than $8,000 to four New York organizations, including the Hispanic Heritage Council of WNY in Buffalo and Latinos Unidos of the Hudson Valley in New Paltz.
Big Y
Big Y kicked off its annual Partners of Hope breast cancer awareness campaign, running through Oct. 21, with customers able to purchase a $1 ribbon at checkout at any location. Since 2007, the initiative has raised more than $3 million, with all proceeds going to 32 local breast cancer support groups, hospitals and medical centers throughout Massachusetts and Connecticut, including programs at UMass Memorial Health, Baystate Health, Yale-New Haven and Hartford Hospital.
“Each year, Partners of Hope reminds us of the extraordinary difference that a community can make when it comes together for a common cause,” said Rick Bossie, EVP and COO at the Springfield, Massachusetts-based grocer.
Kroger
Kroger’s
Central Division expanded its partnership with The Julian Center, Indiana’s largest domestic violence shelter, for Domestic Violence Awareness Month in October. Through the new Feeding Hope campaign, customers at 38 central Indiana Kroger stores can round up at the register from Oct. 1-31, with funds stocking the shelter’s pantry with nutritious food. The Julian Center served more than 1,200 survivors in 2025 – nearly half of them children – and Kroger has donated more than $360,000 to the shelter over the past 10 years.
“As a company rooted in our communities, we have an opportunity to do more than raise funds,” said Mike Goodwin, president of Kroger Central Division. “We can raise awareness, offer hope, and help provide safety and support to those who need it most.”
The Julian Center operates a 24-hour crisis hotline at (317) 920-9320; more information is available at juliancenter.org.
Food Lion
Food Lion Feeds and the NHL’s Carolina Hurricanes launched Stick It To Hunger, a season-long partnership under which the grocer’s hunger-relief platform will help provide the equivalent of 50 meals for every Hurricanes shot on goal during the 2026-27 regular season, up to 150,000 meals. Donations benefit the Carolina Hurricanes Foundation’s efforts to support children’s health by increasing access to nourishing food and nutritional education for families throughout North Carolina.
The initiative builds on Food Lion Feeds’ sports-based hunger-relief programs, including Sack To Give Back and Score to Give More, and its commitment to helping provide 3 billion meals by 2032. Since 2014, the Salisbury, North Carolina-based grocer’s platform has donated more than 1.5 billion meals.
“Food is at the center of so many moments that matter, from breakfast before school to catching up around the dinner table,” said Kevin Durkee, manager of Food Lion Feeds. “Partnering with the Hurricanes is another way we can help families put nourishing food on the table and enjoy those everyday moments together.”
Walmart
Walmart announced a $15 million grant to Feeding America to strengthen how food is rescued, moved and delivered through the charitable food system, as the organization estimates nearly 48 million people nationwide experience food insecurity. Walmart stores and Sam’s Clubs donated 769 million pounds of food in the U.S. in fiscal 2026 alone, and Feeding America expects the new investment, much of it going directly to food banks for retail food rescue infrastructure, to help its network rescue 500 million pounds of food over the next 18 months.
“Walmart stores and Sam’s Clubs donate millions of pounds of food every year, but getting that food to families depends on a strong network of food banks and local organizations,” said Julie Gehrki, senior VP of philanthropy at Walmart. “This investment is about helping give them more of the resources and tools they need to get food where it can do the most good.”
Locally, this year’s Walmart and Sam’s Club Fight Hunger. Spark Change. campaign raised $71,657 for Feeding America Riverside | San Bernardino in California’s Inland Empire, where an estimated 684,000 people face food insecurity. Nationally, the campaign generated more than $18 million this year and has helped secure more than 2.4 billion meals since 2014.
Market 32 and Price Chopper
Market 32 and Price Chopper’s annual Fill a Glass with Hope/Fill a Plate with Promise campaign, in partnership with American Dairy Association North East and Garelick Farms, raised $53,685 for regional f
ood banks in the grocer’s six-state footprint, including a $10,000 company match. Of the total, $40,332 went to 11 food banks and $13,444 funded 6,722 half-gallons of milk for families facing food insecurity. In-season promotions with four regional professional baseball teams, the Hudson Valley Renegades, Syracuse Mets, Binghamton Rumble Ponies and Tri-City ValleyCats, generated another 15,960 meals for local food banks.
“Every meal donated represents an opportunity to make a difference for a family in need,” said Blaine Bringhurst, president of the Schenectady, New York-based grocer.
The company also awarded $15,000 through its Youth Soccer Sweepstakes, with $5,000 grants going to three New York organizations: Alleycats Soccer Club of Albany, Richfield Youth Sports of Richfield Springs and Latham Circle Soccer Club of Latham. More than 300 organizations were nominated by customers.
Cub
The Cub Foundation announced nearly $250,000 in grants to Minnesota nonprofits on Hunger Action Day, the first major investment under a renewed giving strategy focused on youth development, family stability and food security. Recipients include Fairview Children’s Hospital and Boys & Girls Clubs of the Twin Cities ($50,000 each), The Good Acre ($50,000), Ronald McDonald House Charities ($25,000) and 12 community organizations receiving $5,000 each. The foundation intends to invest more than $500,000 annually.
“Cub’s connection to the communities we call home extends well beyond our stores,” said Ariel Tauer, board chair of the Cub Foundation.
Aldi
Aldi committed an additional $10 million through 2032 to longtime partner Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation, bringing its total support for the childhood cancer charity to more than $20 million since 2019. 
The grocer has already raised more than $10.2 million, surpassing its original goal more than a year ahead of schedule, and employees have raised more than $2 million since 2022 for ALSF family programs such as Travel for Care.
“Few things matter more than giving a child the chance to grow up healthy, and I’ve seen firsthand the difference ALSF makes for children and families facing childhood cancer,” said Dave Rinaldo, COO of Aldi.
Weis Markets
Weis Markets
and beekeeper-owned Sioux Honey Co-op delivered three pallets containing 9,720 eight-ounce bottles, 4,860 pounds, of Sue Bee Clover honey to the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank in Harrisburg on the final day of National Honey Month and Hunger Action Month.
Through its Sharing Sweetness initiative, Sioux Honey partners with retailers and food banks nationwide; the delivery pushed its large-scale honey donations past 109,000 pounds in two years.
Wakefern
Wakefern Food Corp.
, ShopRite of Hunterdon County and Flora Food Group held their fifth annual volunteer event at America’s Grow-a-Row in Pittstown, New Jersey, harvesting nearly 110,000 pounds of spaghetti squash for local food banks in just 90 minutes.
The partners also presented a $50,000 donation to support the nonprofit’s mission of connecting fresh produce with families in need.