MANILA – Through the Yum! Brands World Hunger Relief campaign, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell restaurants in the Philippines have contributed Php 6.1 million (US$144,000) to the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) for its activities in Mindanao. The donation will support the on-going relief and early recovery operation for victims of Tropical Storm Washi (Sendong) and school meals programme in conflict-affected areas of Central Mindanao.
“We are deeply impressed with the dedication of Pizza Hut and Taco Bell staff who actively promoted the World Hunger Relief campaign in their restaurants, and in the process raised generous support to help fight hunger,” said WFP Philippines Country Director and Representative Stephen Anderson. “We are also grateful that they extended their campaign to seek additional assistance for Tropical Storm Washi survivors.”
About 155 Pizza Hut and Taco Bell restaurants, which are part of the Yum! Brands chain, collected donations throughout the country during a campaign from November 2011 to January 2012. As part of the campaign, Taco Bell donated Php 10 to WFP from each purchase of a special meal dedicated to supporting school meals programmes. Contributions were also collected in nationally distributed donation boxes.
Customers who donated Php 40 or more received a Christmas postcard featuring World Hunger Relief Volunteer Ms. Venus Raj, who is a Department of Social Welfare and Development Ambassador for Poor Children’s Rights and Welfare.
“We are very proud of our Pizza Hut and Taco Bell employees, and thank our customers whose efforts allowed us to exceed our campaign goals,” said Pizza Hut and Taco Bell Philippines Chief Operating Officer Lars Peterson. “This means more Tropical Storm Washi survivors will receive much-needed assistance, and more school children will benefit from WFP school meal programmes.”
Last year, Pizza Hut donated Php 4.5 million to WFP to support the school meals programme in Central Mindanao, which provided 450,000 meals for 80,000 primary schoolchildren. School meals encourage children to attend school and help them to learn better when they get there. By providing children with the food they need to develop their physical and intellectual potential, school meals act as an important investment in the next generation and help to break the cycle of poverty and hunger.
The World Hunger Relief campaign raises both awareness and funds for WFP’s most urgent hunger needs, especially school meals programmes. Since its launch in 2007, World Hunger Relief has raised nearly US$85 million for WFP and other hunger-fighting organizations, providing more than 350 million meals and saving the lives of millions of people in 39 countries.
