Walt Disney World, Disneyland donate surplus food to help local communities

ANAHEIM, Calif. -- Walt Disney World Resort and Disneyland Resort have begun donating surplus food to help the local communities during their temporary closures.

On Tuesday, Walt Disney World Resort cast members joined the Distribution Services team that oversees collection and delivery of donations to help the community and share surplus food inventory like fresh salads, greens and expertly cooked hot items with the Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida.

"These donations would not be possible without the dedication of cast members behind the scenes who collect, sort and distribute every item to ensure it's delivered with the highest level of freshness, keeping food safety top of mind," said Tajiana Ancora-Brown, director, External Affairs at Walt Disney World Resort. "We feel an immense sense of pride and excitement every time we see the Disney Harvest truck making deliveries in the community, and we're so grateful for the team that makes these donations happen."

At Disneyland Resort, food donations began over the weekend. While closely following safety guidelines, excess inventory of dairy, fruit, vegetables, packaged goods and banquet meals were shared with Second Harvest Food Bank to be quickly moved out to pantries and food distribution sites throughout Orange County.

"We are deeply grateful to Disneyland Resort for their generous donation of food," said Harald Herrmann, CEO of Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County. "Donations of food, especially shelf-stable food, will be critical in the days and weeks ahead to serve those in our community impacted by the COVID-19 crisis."

Both Disneyland Resort and Walt Disney World Resort have an ongoing commitment of reducing food waste, and unserved food from select locations is regularly donated to support those in need within the local community. Each year, the resorts donate over 1.2M meals to their local Second Harvest Food Bank as part of the ongoing food donation programs. The company's commitment to Second Harvest also includes monetary donations and Disney VoluntEARS efforts, where cast members donate their time to collect, sort and distribute food donations.

Both parks remain closed through the end of the month. Disney said its focus in the meantime is the well-being of the company's cast members, guests, families and local communities.

This story originally appeared on the Disney Parks Blog

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