City Harvest Launches Skip Lunch Fight Hunger Campaign in New York

City Harvest, the world’s first food rescue organization, is challenging New Yorkers to raise $1.1 million to help feed New York City children through its annual fundraising campaign, Skip Lunch Fight Hunger. The campaign, which runs from May 14-18, encourages participants to donate the money they would normally spend on lunch to City Harvest to help ensure that all children in New York City have the nutritious food they need to thrive.

One in five children in New York City don’t always know where their next meal is coming from. Many children rely on free school breakfasts and lunches as the only healthy meals they will get during the day. When school is out for the summer, families that are already struggling to make ends meet face the additional burden of having to provide these meals for their children.

The campaign was created in 2002 by Dana Cowin, City Harvest Board and Food Council member and former editor-in-chief of Food & Wine magazine. Cowin joined City Harvest’s Board of Directors because she was impressed with the organization’s efficient food rescue model, and she wanted more people to know that even a small donation can make a big difference. She encouraged friends and colleagues to donate what they would spend on a coffee or lunch, and thus, helped create the Skip Lunch Fight Hunger campaign. A $15 donation to City Harvest helps feed 60 kids for a day. To date, the campaign has raised more than $8 million.

Each year, thousands of New Yorkers participate in Skip Lunch Fight Hunger. Companies compete against each other to raise the most money, and teams devise creative ways to fundraise, including organizing bake sales in their offices, encouraging employees to donate at the cafeteria cash register and hosting luncheons in their workplaces to raise awareness and donations. This year, for the first time, the first 50 teams to raise $500 will receive a $500 match, generously provided by The Joyce & Daniel Cowin Foundation.

Funds raised from the campaign will directly support City Harvest’s efforts to rescue 59 million pounds of nutritious food that would otherwise go to waste and deliver it to hundreds of community food programs serving New York families across the five boroughs.

“City Harvest helps to provide fresh fruit and yogurt for many of our children who do not have access to these at home,” said Mary Sanchez, director of administration for Fresh Youth Initiatives, a City Harvest partner and community program that provides support for low-income, immigrant and first-generation youth living in Washington Heights, in a statement.

Individuals can register on City Harvest’s website to be team captains. Skip Lunch Fight Hunger participants are encouraged to donate any day(s) during the week of May 14, and those who donate $45 or more online will receive a voucher in June for a special thank-you treat from Pret A Manger, which has donated its unsold food at the end of every night to City Harvest for the past 18 years. Additionally, in New York City from May 14-18, Pret’s signature Harvest Cookie will be renamed the City Harvest Cookie, and 100 percent of proceeds from sales that week will be donated to City Harvest. Every cookie sold will help feed 8 children for a day.

“We are thrilled to be a part of this campaign and for the continued opportunity to work alongside an organization that shares our values and commitment to food rescue,” said Jo Brett, president of Pret A Manger U.S., in a statement. “Our longstanding partnership with City Harvest is a testament to our commitment to helping New Yorkers in need—together we have donated over 5 million meals.”