Starbucks strengthens commitment to hunger relief in the Philippines

Partnerships with Grab, the Philippine FoodBank Foundation and Gawad Kalinga will expand as part of its commitment to fight hunger

As the company marks its 25th year in the Philippines, Starbucks strengthened its commitment to positively impact the well-being of all who connect with Starbucks by supporting hunger relief in the market by expanding the reach of its partnerships with Grab, the Philippine FoodBank Foundation and Gawad Kalinga to help local communities and children facing hunger.

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In celebration of its commitment to building a more sustainable future in the market and in support of Starbucks global people positive ambition to enhance the well-being of 1 billion people by 2030, Michael Conway, group president, Starbucks International and Channel Development, and Noey Lopez, president and ceo of Starbucks Philippines, announced that Starbucks Philippines will award a USD$25,000 grant to the Philippine FoodBank Foundation and another USD$25,000 grant to Gawad Kalinga. These grants will focus on expanding the ongoing Starbucks FoodShare and Gawad Kalinga’s Kusina ng Kalinga feeding programs.

“Starbucks has always been a different kind of company, one deep with purpose,” said Michael Conway, group president, Starbucks International and Channel Development. “Since we entered the Philippines 25 years ago, Starbucks now has more than 400 stores, and we are using our scale for good by creating meaningful impact for our partners, customers and communities. We’re proud of our green apron partners in the Philippines and the impact they are making to reduce hunger and support the well-being of their communities.” 

“Much of the transformative work on our fight against hunger is possible because of the support of The Starbucks Foundation, and dedication of our community impact partners,” said Noey Lopez, president of Starbucks Philippines. “We are grateful to all organizations that help us implement our hunger relief programs. As we celebrate our 25^th anniversary in the Philippines, we look towards expanding our social impact programs and reaching more communities.” 

Addressing child hunger with Gawad Kalinga’s Kusina ng Kalinga

In April 2022, The Starbucks Foundation awarded a USD$50,000 Global Community Impact Grant to Gawad Kalinga to support the Kusina ng Kalinga, a food donation program that will reach more than 600 children. The program aims to bring children back to proper nutrition within 95 days.

The Kusina ng Kalinga program had started the implementation of the program in Gawad Kalinga communities in Toyota, Sta. Rosa Laguna and Tribuin, Batasan Hills since July 2022. Starbucks Philippines’ additional grant will help the Kusina ng Kalinga program reach more children and families, and Starbucks Philippines partners (employees) will also volunteer with the community kitchens to help with food preparation and distribution.

Helping communities in need through Starbucks FoodShare

Starbucks Philippines is the first market in Southeast Asia to pilot Starbucks FoodShare food donation program through its partnership with Philippine FoodBank Foundation and Grab. Since January 2022, participating Starbucks stores connect with Grab drivers to pick up food donations carefully prepared by partners daily and deliver them to the Philippine FoodBank Foundation. The food bank then distributes donations to communities in need of food assistance within Metro Manila.

Since the program launched in January 2022, the company has donated close to 200,000 food items to communities in need.

In celebration of its 25th year of creating connections through coffee in the Philippines, Starbucks will continue to drive meaningful change for local communities through social action.