Stop Hunger and the World Food Programme Join Forces to Develop Innovative and Sustainable Hunger Solutions

Stop Hunger, an endowment fund created by Sodexo to fight against hunger and malnutrition around the world, and the World Food Programme (WFP), the world's largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger, have signed a three-year partnership agreement to work together toward a world with zero hunger. Although 805 million people suffer from hunger today, making it the world’s number one health issue, it is a problem that can be solved.

Through this partnership, Stop Hunger will help WFP strengthen its School Meals Program, which feeds 20 million schoolchildren in more than 60 countries around the globe—often in the hardest-to-reach areas with high rates of chronic malnutrition. Specifically, the partnership will focus on creating a sustainable link between local agricultural production and free school meals, helping ensure that the food children receive is healthy, diversified and from local sources as often as possible. Sodexo will leverage its skills-based sponsorship program through which employees can share their expertise to help make a difference in the lives of vulnerable children by supporting local economies.

Stop Hunger will also enable WFP to strengthen its emergency operations by reinforcing its food voucher operations. Food vouchers are key to WFP emergency relief and reconstruction operations because they allow vulnerable people affected by disasters to make their own food choices while supporting the local economy. During natural or food emergencies, Sodexo, through Stop Hunger, and its stakeholders will also support WFP by providing storage spaces, transportation and other resources, when possible.

The partnership’s costs will be covered by Stop Hunger, enabling the World Food Programme to benefit from the transfer of skills at zero cost. In addition, Stop Hunger is committed to multiplying the impact of the partnership by organizing fundraising campaigns for WFP’s school meals programs and emergency operations throughout Sodexo’s entire ecosystem: employees, clients, consumers, suppliers and shareholders.