Summer-long “tell”-a-thon launches June 10 with goal of educating 22 million people about the increased risk of child hunger in summer

OMAHA, Neb.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jun. 8, 2015-- As the final bell of the school year rings, kids around the United States share their excitement for summer vacation. Unfortunately, summer isn’t carefree for all kids. When school is out, more than 80 percent of the 22 million children who rely on free or reduced-price school meals¹ are left wondering about their next meal.

ConAgra Foods (NYSE: CAG) and the ConAgra Foods Foundation mark their sixth year of supporting Feeding America’s Hunger Free Summer initiatives ranging from grants to consumer engagement. This year’s program features a first of its kind Tell-A-Thon kicking off on June 10 and co-hosted by YouTube sensation Kid President, designed to call attention to the increased instance of child hunger in summer and inspire people to take action in their communities. The program also includes 26 grants funded by the ConAgra Foods Foundation to help local Feeding America food banks provide meals to kids when they need them most, when school is out for summer.

Take Part in the Summer-long #HungerFreeSummer Tell-A-Thon The Tell-A-Thon idea came from conversations with kids, who said a telethon happened when “you tell someone something.” This innocent reaction is the inspiration behind the #HungerFreeSummer Tell-A-Thon, a virtual Tell-A-Thon that invites kids and adults alike to tell someone they know about the issue of hunger in the summer and encourage action.

“When people hear about this issue, they jump into action,” says Kori Reed, vice president, ConAgra Foods Cause and Foundation. “By telling as many people as possible about the heightened risk of food insecurity during the summer months, we hope to inspire action through simple ways to get involved and increase the impact we can all have together.”

Kid President, played by Robby Novak, has partnered with ConAgra Foods to host the first #HungerFreeSummer Tell-A-Thon, where the goal is to tell as many as 22 million people about the issue of summer hunger and encourage them to continue passing along the message or get involved in their community. Kid President will kick-off the Tell-A-Thon on June 10, the third annual National Hunger Free Summer Day, but it doesn’t stop there. The public can continue participating and sharing information about food insecurity and the fight against hunger to keep the messages alive throughout the summer. Here’s how:

• Tune In: People can watch the live-streamed kick-off of the #HungerFreeSummer Tell-A-Thon hosted by Kid President on Wednesday, June 10 at 3-3:10 p.m. CT live via YouTube: https://youtu.be/0ohAeenGSXE and tell a friend about the issue of child hunger.
• Continue Telling Stories: Keep the Tell-A-Thon going after the kick-off by sharing your own video message or social post with friends and family to spread the word and help reach 22 million people by the end of the summer using the hashtag #HungerFreeSummer. Tag friends and family to encourage them to keep the message moving throughout summer, like an old-fashioned game of telephone.
• Participate in Hunger Free Fridays: Another easy way to support the cause is to look for the red pushpin and code on specially marked ConAgra Foods’ products. For each eight-digit code entered at www.ChildHungerEndsHere.com this summer ConAgra Foods will donate the monetary equivalent of one meal to Feeding America^®, up to three million meals. On every Friday between now and July 31, 2015 there is a special treat, 1 code = 1 meal² plus 1 bonus meal. Look for a special message from Kid President on Hunger Free Fridays.

About ConAgra Foods Foundations’ Hunger Free Summer Grants This summer, 23 Feeding America food banks in 15 states will receive Hunger Free Summer grants, funded by the ConAgra Foods Foundation and distributed by Feeding America, to start new or expand existing summer feeding programs. These grants totaling $700,000––ranging from $20,000 to $40,000 each––will allow the food banks to serve food in school libraries during the summer months, provide meals to kindergarteners at summer camp, deliver boxes of food to families in need and beyond.

New this year, Feeding America developed Hunger Free Summer Hub Grants that the ConAgra Foods Foundation is also funding for three local food banks to better evaluate the summer feeding landscape in their community and activate programs over a three-year period. Each grant is $225,000 and is designed to help recipient food banks create holistic programs and services to increase access to summer meals for children and their families.

One of the Hunger Free Summer Hub grant recipients, the St. Mary’s Food Bank Alliance in Phoenix, will expand their school pantry program across Arizona, where they will provide more children and families with a place to shop during the summer for free emergency food and access to nutrition education, health tips and budgeting ideas.

For more information about Hunger Free Summer, the Tell-A-Thon and summer feeding programs, follow the discussion using the #HungerFreeSummer hashtag, visit Facebook.com/ChildHungerEndsHere, or follow along on Twitter and Instagram at @ChildHungerEnds.

About ConAgra Foods ConAgra Foods, Inc. is one of North America's largest packaged food companies with branded and private branded food found in 99 percent of America's households, as well as a strong commercial foods business serving restaurants and foodservice operations globally. Consumers can find recognized brands such as Banquet®, Chef Boyardee®, Egg Beaters®, Healthy Choice®, Hebrew National®, Hunt's®, Marie Callender's®, Orville Redenbacher's®, PAM®, Peter Pan®, Reddi-wip®, Slim Jim®, Snack Pack® and many other ConAgra Foods brands, along with food sold by ConAgra Foods under private brand labels, in grocery, convenience, mass merchandise, club and drug stores. Additionally, ConAgra Foods supplies frozen potato and sweet potato products as well as other vegetable, spice, bakery and grain products to commercial and foodservice customers. ConAgra Foods operates ReadySetEat.com, an interactive recipe website that provides consumers with easy dinner recipes and more. For more information, please visit us at www.conagrafoods.com.

About ConAgra Foods Foundation The ConAgra Foods Foundation, through its Nourish Today, Flourish Tomorrow platform, is dedicated to raising awareness of the nearly 16 million children in America who are at risk of hunger and live in food insecure homes where they may not have enough food to live active, healthful lives. It aggressively pursues sustainable solutions in the fight against child hunger. And the Foundation is committed to building a community of people who are passionate about ensuring that all kids have access to the food and facts they need to eat nutritiously while living balanced lifestyles and succeeding in school and life. ConAgra Foods Foundation invests in national and local partnerships with high-impact, not-for-profit organizations, such as Feeding America and 4H that take an innovative approach to addressing needs in the core areas of hunger and nutrition education. For more information, please visit www.conagrafoods.com or www.facebook.com/conagrafoods. The ConAgra Foods Foundation is primarily funded by ConAgra Foods.

About Feeding America Feeding America is the nationwide network of 200 food banks that leads the fight against hunger in the United States. Together, we provide food to more than 46 million people through 60,000 food pantries and meal programs in communities across America. Feeding America also supports programs that improve food security among the people we serve; educates the public about the problem of hunger; and advocates for legislation that protects people from going hungry. Individuals, charities, businesses and government all have a role in ending hunger. Donate. Volunteer. Advocate. Educate. Together we can solve hunger. Visit www.feedingamerica.org, find us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter.

About Kid President Brad Montague and Robby Novak are co-creators of Kid President, the popular web series featured on Rainn Wilson's SoulPancake YouTube channel. Together the two have created a movement of joy and fun and created work seen by tens of millions. Brad and Robby truly believe that if we make the world better for kids, then the world will be better for everyone. For more than five years, Brad and Robby have dedicated time both overseas and here in the U.S. to ensure kids have access to food – from volunteering at local soup kitchens in their hometown to packing more than 450,000 meals for kids all over the world to working with organizations like UNICEF and Rice Bowls. They believe that kids should simply focus on being awesome and not have to worry about their next meal, especially right here in our backyard. With a passion for fostering creativity and compassion in young people, Brad is also the director of GO! Camp, an experience for teenagers who want to change the world. Robby is in fifth grade. He likes basketball, football, soccer and making the world better. The two live and work in Tennessee.

Food banks receiving Hunger Free Summer and Hub grants include:

¹ 2013 U.S. Department of Agriculture/Food & Nutrition Service

² For every 8-digit code from participating products entered by 1/7/16, ConAgra Foods® will donate 10¢, the cost for Feeding America® to provide one meal through its network of local food banks. Maximum: 3 million meals. Guaranteed minimum donation: 1.5 million meals ($150,000. Limit 5 code entries per person/computer each day. See ChildHungerEndsHere.com for complete details and a list of participating brands. Valid in U.S. and Puerto Rico only. © ConAgra Foods, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

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Source: ConAgra Foods

ConAgra Foods Lanie Friedman, 630-857-1086 Lanie.Friedman@conagrafoods.com or Ketchum Katie Heck, 312-228-6881 Katie.Heck@ketchum.com www.ConAgraFoods.com www.ChildHungerEndsHere.com