The Enterprise Rent-A-Car Foundation has donated $40 million to-date to food banks around the world as part of Enterprise’s Fill Your Tank® programme, one of the largest donations aimed at fighting hunger.
Launched in late 2016, the Fill Your Tank programme is a company-wide initiative that was created to celebrate Enterprise’s 60th anniversary by providing a total of $60 million to address food insecurity around the globe. Over a six-year period, the Foundation is distributing $10 million each year to food banks and charities throughout North America and Europe, as well as local food banks and pantries in North American communities served by Enterprise. The latest distribution marks the program’s fourth year of giving.
“With nearly 8,000 neighbourhood and airport branch offices worldwide, Enterprise Rent-A-Car is committed to promoting long-term growth and prosperity in the communities we serve – all of which face some level of food insecurity,” said Carolyn Kindle Betz, President, Enterprise Rent-A-Car Foundation. “But often, hunger is an issue that doesn’t get the attention it deserves. We are proud to be addressing hunger and making a difference in the communities where our employees live and work.”
Globally, one in nine people don’t have enough food to be healthy and lead an active life, according to the World Food Programme. In the UK, Enterprise has played an integral role in increasing the amount of food FareShare redistributes. Since 2016 when the programme began, FareShare has increased the amount of food distributed by around 7,500 tonnes a year, representing some 18 million more meals.
During this time the grant has helped FareShare supply food to an additional 1,617 charities and community organisations. Enterprise funding has also been integral to developing FareShare’s regional centres, including the funding to create FareShare East Anglia, which in 2019 supplied food to 4,106 groups supporting an estimated 439,342 people.
During the first four years of the programme, $40 million was distributed as follows:
- $10 million to Feeding America®, the largest U.S. domestic hunger-relief and food rescue charity. These funds help fight hunger among seniors and children.
- $6 million to Food Banks Canada to support operations and infrastructure in food banks across Canada.
- $4 million to The Global FoodBanking Network to expand the work of food banks around the world, especially food banks in the U.K., Ireland, France, Germany and Spain on behalf of company-owned operations in these countries.
- $20 million to local food banks and pantries in North American communities served by Enterprise.
Programme Impact
Since its inception, the Fill Your Tank programme has offered funding to help create, implement and maintain programmes that help mitigate the critical effects of food insecurity.
Examples of how funds were used in 2019 include:
- 1.9 million meals were served to 78,696 seniors in local communities as part of Feeding America’s senior hunger strategy.
- Over $80,000 was dispersed to Food Banks Alberta to build additional capacity in the food network and support 90+ member food banks in Canada.
- €75,000 was donated to help fund Click&Don in France – an IT solution that addresses inefficiencies and inequality in the distribution of food throughout the Federation in France – and make the solution fully operational. Click&Don allows growers, manufacturers, retailers and larger regional food banks to report surplus food that smaller food banks can then claim and distribute. The solution was used by 80 food banks in the French Federation of Food Banks network.
- €20,000 was donated to support the establishment of two new community food banks in the towns of Cabra and Tallaght in Ireland, where there has been an increase in students experiencing malnutrition.
- €75,000 was used to supply three local food banks in Spain with isothermal vehicles to increase the number of individuals served and improve the quantity of food distributed.
“The Enterprise Rent-A-Car Foundation’s annual donation reflects an ongoing commitment that not only delivers food, it also delivers hope and the ability to improve and sustain programmes that reflect the complex, diverse needs of food-insecure populations,” said Claire Babineaux-Fontenot, CEO, Feeding America.
For more information about the Enterprise Rent-A-Car Foundation’s Fill Your Tank programme or other global philanthropic initiatives, visit https://www.enterprisemobility.com/en/our-impact/community-giving.html.
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