Even with improvements in unemployment rates and the economy over the past few years, the rates of hunger in America remain pervasively high. Some 12.7 percent of people living in the U.S. (42 million Americans) are food insecure meaning they do not always have enough nutritious food for an adequate diet. Food banks and other organizations that can leverage national and local partnerships across the supply chain can secure food at costs well below retail prices.

Feeding America is a group that provides emergency food more cost-effectively than conventional food drives.

As a nationwide network of 200 food banks and 60,000 pantries and meal programs, Feeding America secures donations from national grocery manufacturers, retailers, shippers, packers, and growers as well as government agencies. It then moves donated groceries to member food banks that in turn distribute the items through pantries and meal programs that serve families, children, seniors, and others at risk of hunger.

Through its network of food banks, Feeding America can help provide meals for a family of four for as little as $11 to $30 per week. The USDA estimates the retail cost of feeding that family at $128 to $294—or more for a week of healthy meals, depending on the mix of items purchased. Feeding America’s Ways to Give web page has a monthly giving program, plus fundraising ideas.

Read our full profile of Feeding America at the Center for High Impact Philanthropy. 

For more high impact opportunities like this, see our full High Impact Giving Guide.