CINCINNATI, Sept. 4, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The Kroger Co. (NYSE: KR) today launched the #ZeroHungerZeroWaste Donation Challenge to educate and inspire. Kroger invites associates, customers and communities across America to participate by donating groceries to their local food bank, sharing their generous actions via social media using the hashtag and inviting friends to join the movement. The #ZeroHungerZeroWaste Donation Challenge runs through September, which is Hunger Action Month, and the campaign is one more step the company is taking to create zero hunger communities.

"By donating a bag of food from your pantry or a Kroger store, you have the power to feed local families and communities and inspire your friends to do same," said Jessica Adelman, Kroger's group vice president of corporate affairs. "Paradoxically, 1 in 8 Americans struggles with hunger every day, while 40 percent of the food produced in the country goes uneaten, which includes the food waste we sometimes create in our own households and kitchens. It's an absurdity we can all address in big and small ways."

How to participate in the #ZeroHungerZeroWaste Donation Challenge:

• Donate a bag of groceries to a local food bank or shelter during the month of September;

• Post a photo of your donation with the hashtag #ZeroHungerZeroWaste;

• Tag a friend and issue a donation challenge to them to donate food during the month of September;

• Tag your local food bank or shelter, to help raise awareness throughout your community about where and how to donate.

In 2017, Kroger donated more than 325 million meals through Feeding America and aims to donate three billion meals by 2025.

Kroger was recently recognized for its Zero Hunger | Zero Waste initiative by Fortune on the publication's 2018 Change the World list, which features 57 companies across the world that are helping the planet and addressing social problems.

Kroger's longstanding partner Feeding America operates 200 food banks that serve communities around the country. To find your local food bank, visit: http://www.feedingamerica.org/find-your-local-foodbank/

At The Kroger Co. (NYSE: KR), we are dedicated to our Purpose: to Feed the Human Spirit™. We are nearly half a million associates who serve over nine million customers daily through a seamless digital shopping experience and 2,800 retail food stores under a variety of banner names, serving America through food inspiration and uplift, and creating #ZeroHungerZeroWaste communities by 2025. To learn more about us, visit our newsroom and investor relations site.

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SOURCE The Kroger Co.