The Giant Co. shoppers 'rounded up' to grant $300,000 for Healing the Planet program
Carlisle, Pa.-based The Giant Co., in partnership with Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful, awarded a total of $300,000 to 23 recipients of its 2023 Healing the Planet grant program, funding for projects addressing food waste prevention, reduction and recovery across the retailer’s operating area.
Funding for the grants was provided by customers at Giant, Martin’s and Giant Heirloom Market stores who rounded up their grocery purchase to the nearest dollar from March through May, according to a news release. The generosity of those shoppers raised a total of $1.4 million for program partners, which also included Rodale Institute and Planet Bee Foundation.
The Healing the Planet grant recipients were announced June 15 at an event at Dickinson College in Carlisle. The college received $20,000 to complete an anaerobic digester project for conversion of community food waste and dairy manure into biogas and grid-tied electricity.
“As a grocer, we understand the choices we make and the steps we take to divert food waste from landfills are crucial in helping to heal our planet,” The Giant Co. Community Impact Manager Jessica Groves said in the release. “What we are doing to reduce food waste now, whether it’s the projects of our 23 Healing the Planet grant awardees or through our daily operations, will create a more sustainable tomorrow for us all.”
Related: The Giant Co. shares second annual Community Impact Report
Grants range from $2,500 up to $20,000. Projects in the grocer's operating areas within Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia or West Virginia were eligible.
These Pennsylvania organizations received a 2023 Healing the Planet grant:
- ACLAMO, Norristown.
- AGAPE: Love From Above To Our Community, Bloomsburg.
- Arch Street Meeting House Preservation Trust, Philadelphia.
- Benner Elementary School, Bellefonte.
- Bucks County Housing Group, Warminster.
- Child Hunger Outreach Partners, Towanda.
- City of Lancaster, Lancaster Compost Co-Op, Lancaster.
- Creative Community Grow, Harrisburg.
- Curwensville Area High School, Curwensville.
- Dickinson College, Carlisle.
- Evergreen Elementary School, Collegeville.
- Fairmount Park Conservancy, Philadelphia.
- Horn Farm Center for Agricultural Education, York.
- Indiana County Conservation District, Indiana.
- Penbrook Lions and Leo Clubs, Harrisburg.
- Pennsylvania Resources Council, Media.
- Phoenixville Area Community Services Inc., Phoenixville.
- Quiet Creek Herb Farm & School of Country Living, Brookville.
- Riverside School District, Taylor.
- Share Food Program, Philadelphia.
- South Philadelphia Community Fridge (Project of Open Collective Foundation), Covina.
- The Advocacy Project, Washington.
- York Fresh Food Farms, York.
“This project will benefit farmers, the watershed and our climate. We are elated and look forward to working with these local partners to make our community more sustainable,” said Matt Steiman, energy and livestock manager at Dickinson College.
All funded projects can include community composting, increased access to compost for agricultural producers, educational programs regarding food waste prevention, reduction and recovery, and diversion of food waste from landfills. Community gardens are eligible for funding but must have a food waste prevention, reduction and/or recovery component, such as education.
Program, organization history
Since 2021, the Healing the Planet grant program has awarded more than $1.3 million to 110 recipients for projects connecting communities to green spaces and improved or helped to protect local waterways and water resources.
“Not only do these types of projects save natural resources and reduce the amount of material that enters the waste stream, in some cases, they will also provide food security to those in need,” Shannon Reiter, Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful president, said in the release. “… We also want to thank all of you who ‘rounded up’ at the register. Your generosity will directly impact your local community.”
Related: The Giant Co. to save 9,000 gallons of gas with 4 new electric vehicles
Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful has supported community improvement initiatives and encouraged community leadership, responsibility and a respect for the environment since 1990.
Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful, a state affiliate of Keep American Beautiful Inc., has more than 30 years of experience in organizing volunteer-driven community improvement events.
The omnichannel retailer has 193 stores, 132 pharmacies, 107 fuel stations and more than 180 online pickup hubs and grocery delivery service in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia and New Jersey. Founded in 1923 in Carlisle, Pa., The Giant Co. is a company of Ahold Delhaize USA.
