Walmart Foundation grant to help move food from local donors to food pantries

The Northwest Arkansas Food Bank will receive a $51,500 grant to help transport food to local pantries.

The organization announced the grant from the Walmart Foundation on Wednesday, according to a news release.

"Each year, 72 billion pounds of perfectly good food goes to waste, yet 40 million Americans face hunger," Kent Eikenberry, the food bank's president and chief executive officer, said. "Walmart Foundation's generous support will help us leverage technology and volunteers to engage local businesses in the fight to end hunger."

The grant will be used to develop ways to transfer unused, perishable food items from local donors to food pantries in Northwest Arkansas, according to the release.

The food donation app MealConnect will help the food bank make the process more convenient for donors.

Volunteers will deliver the food items from donors to partnering organizations like local food pantries and soup kitchens, according to the release.

The food bank plans to train the program's volunteers and provide ways to safely store the donated food.