N.C. College Students Fight Hunger Through Intercollegiate Competition to Win Up to $22,000

The Collegiate Hunger Challenge is Hosted by Food Lion Feeds and N.C. Campus Compact

SALISBURY, N.C., Jan. 27, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- North Carolina College students committed to fighting hunger on and around their campuses are participating in an innovative competition created by Food Lion Feeds and North Carolina Campus Compact, a collaborative network of colleges and universities committed to educating students for civic and social responsibility. A study released last year found that 45 percent of students who participated in the survey of more than 100 institutions said they had gone hungry in the last 30 days, providing even more evidence that food insecurity among college students must be addressed.

Now in its second year, the 2020 Collegiate Hunger Challenge features 12 North Carolina colleges and universities competing with each other to win up to $22,000 to help fight hunger on and around campus. Throughout the competition, which runs from January 26 – April 25, 2020, the participating colleges and universities will earn points based on several activities the school participates in, all centered around collecting and donating food for neighbors in need or driving awareness on the issue of hunger.

“We partnered with North Carolina Campus Compact to create the Collegiate Hunger Challenge because we know that students can’t learn when they are hungry,” said Emma Inman, director of External Communications and Community Relations for Food Lion. “Food Lion has been joining with our communities to fight hunger for many years. It’s important to us to involve our next generation of leaders to help find solutions to eliminate the difficult choices many of our neighbors have to make between textbooks and groceries, or dinner and rent. We’re excited to see the results of this year’s competition and wish all the participating schools the best of luck as they create new and unique ways to fight hunger in the towns and cities we serve.”

“It is a privilege to partner again with Food Lion to raise awareness of student hunger and to leverage higher education resources to address food insecurity both on campus and in local communities,” added Leslie Garvin, executive director of North Carolina Campus Compact. “We were blown away by the passion and commitment the student leaders demonstrated last year and are looking forward to seeing what they accomplish this spring. We remain inspired by Food Lion’s focused commitment to address hunger in North Carolina.”

The 2020 Collegiate Hunger Challenge participating schools are:

• Alamance Community College (Graham, N.C.)
• Campbell University (Buies Creek, N.C.)
• Central Piedmont Community College (Charlotte, N.C.)
• Elizabeth City State University (Elizabeth City, N.C.)
• Lenoir-Rhyne University (Hickory, N.C.)
• N.C. A&T State University (Greensboro, N.C.)
• N.C. State University (Raleigh, N.C.)
• Piedmont Community College (Yanceyville, N.C.)
• UNC Charlotte (Charlotte, N.C.)
• UNC Greensboro (Greensboro, N.C.)
• UNC Pembroke (Pembroke, N.C.)
• Western Carolina University (Cullowhee, N.C.)

Updates from the Collegiate Hunger Challenge will be shared on Food Lion’s Twitter and Instagram accounts.

To learn more about the Food Lion Feeds hunger relief initiative, visit www.foodlion.com/feeds.

About Food Lion
Food Lion, based in Salisbury, N.C., since 1957, has more than 1,000 stores in 10 Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic states and employs more than 63,000 associates. By leveraging its longstanding heritage of low prices and convenient locations, Food Lion is working to own the easiest full shop grocery experience in the Southeast, anchored by a strong commitment to affordability, freshness and the communities it serves. Through Food Lion Feeds, the company has committed to provide 500 million meals to individuals and families in need by the end of 2020. Food Lion is a company of Ahold Delhaize USA, the U.S. division of Zaandam-based Royal Ahold Delhaize Group. For more information, visit www.foodlion.com

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/3d554442-9e81-409f-b4aa-19f5ad67d51a