Lowcountry Food Bank has received $50,000 from the Food Lion Feeds Charitable Foundation to help nourish neighbors who experience hunger in the 10 coastal counties of South Carolina that Lowcountry Food Bank serves. The “Summers Without Hunger” grant supports community feeding partners as they tackle childhood hunger prevention, food insecurity and promote healthier lifestyles through nutritional education initiatives.
Childhood hunger often spikes in the summer when school-based meal programs end, leaving millions of children across the U.S. without consistent access to nutritious food. This lack of access can have lasting physical, mental and educational consequences.
For many children in the 10 coastal counties of South Carolina, summer is a break not just from school but, unfortunately, from food. With this funding from Food Lion Feeds, Lowcountry Food Bank will provide nutritious meals to children who experience food insecurity during the Summer of 2026. Vast food deserts and the lack of an adequate (if available at all) public transportation system are contributing factors to child food insecurity, especially during the summer.
With support from the Food Lion Feeds Charitable Foundation, Lowcountry Food Bank will serve nutritious meals to children with limited or no access to healthy food during the summer. Working in partnership with community organizations who will deliver the meals to easily accessible locations or serve as distribution sites, Lowcountry Food Bank will provide children with a week’s worth of nutritious lunches and/or snack items for eight weeks during the summer.
To help bridge that gap, Food Lion customers and participating vendors supported the annual Summers Without Hunger campaign, which provided more than 28 million meals* to children and families in need. From June 18 to July 15, customers purchased specially designed reusable bags for $2, with proceeds funding grants to local feeding agencies. These grants will help ensure children facing food insecurity continue to have access to nourishing meals outside of the school year.
"Families with children in coastal South Carolina are struggling to survive as the cost of living is exceeding their income," said Nick Osborne, President and CEO of Lowcountry Food Bank. "Food is often the first place families can reduce spending to make ends meet - resulting in significant impacts on children’s physical, social, cognitive, and behavioral development."
More than 48,000 children (1 in 6) face hunger every day in the 10 coastal counties of South Carolina. This is a 41% increase in the number of children who experience food insecurity since 2021 (Feeding America 2025 Map the Meal Gap).
The National School Lunch Program is a vital resource for children who experience food insecurity, and for many children, the food they receive at school is most, if not all the nutritious food they have to eat. Therefore, when school is not in session, children face an even greater threat of being hungry.
"We are thankful to the Food Lion Feeds Charitable Foundation for this meaningful grant award that will mean so much to hardworking families who want to ensure they can consistently give their children healthy meals when school is not in session," said Osborne.
The Food Lion Feeds Charitable Foundation is committed to supporting families facing food insecurity across its 10-state footprint. Established in 2001, the foundation provides financial support for programs and organizations dedicated to feeding local neighbors in the communities it serves. Since its inception, the foundation has awarded nearly $23 million in grants.
*Investments are converted to a meal equivalent based on various meal equivalent formulas.