2022 has started off strong, and while we are all already very busy, I wanted to step back and take some time to reflect on our #SoylentForGood impact over the last year.
In 2021, our society went through tremendous ups and downs. As COVID ebbed and flowed, the impact was felt in waves in every city and town across the country. In Los Angeles and in all other cities that we operate in, we continued to see the harsh effect on underserved communities around us, so we continued to step in and do our part.
In times of great hardship, we are reminded of the strength and resilience of those around us. I was also reminded of how many people wanted to help.
In 2021, the team at Soylent donated 655,521 meals.
Since the pandemic's beginning, we have donated more than 2.5 Million Meals.
While we have been fortunate to be able to ramp up our donations since the beginning of the pandemic because we want to respond to the growing need, our #SoylentForGood program has been running since the inception of our company!
To date, we have donated 5,069,804 meals, and this number grows every month.
Five million meals donated is a massive accomplishment for any food company. Still, as a younger, start-up this number is something we are very proud of and is only possible because we prioritize giving back in all areas of our business. Giving back is built into the structure of our company and is not an afterthought or a follow-up. Each of these meals meant that someone did not have to skip breakfast, go hungry, or eat something that wasn’t good for them. The ripple effect of these meals reaches well beyond our donations and into communities and families around the country, and we are honoured to be able to have this type of impact.
During the fall of 2021, we also launched the ability for our consumers to get involved and give back as well.
Since the launch of our #SoylentForGood customer donation program, we have had many customer donations and, as a result, provided more than 21,000 meals to those in need!
We are grateful to not only have a staff and board that believes in giving back, but we also have one of the most generous consumer bases in the United States, and we don’t take this lightly.
Thank you all for your support and contributions.
These donations went directly to feed underserved communities through our incredible partners working on the front lines of hunger relief across the country, including The Greater Chicago Food Depository, Second Harvest of the Greater Valley, Food Bank of Northern Nevada, The Salvation Army of Joliet, Second Harvest Food Bank of Northeast Pennsylvania, The Northern Illinois Food Bank, and many others!
Even though the Soylent team is fully remote and spread around the country, when we can meet safely in person, we always prioritize volunteering and giving back to the communities where we are. In this spirit, some of our team members volunteered for a day at The Food Bank of Rockies in Denver, Colorado, during a meeting in November. They were able to pack a good deal of food boxes and distribute more than 4,000 meals to communities served by the food bank. If you have never volunteered at your local food bank, I highly recommend it!
In addition to the donations listed above, our #SoylentForGood program also participated in National Nurses Appreciation day by sending products directly to nurses and healthcare staff around the country who continue to be on the frontline of COVID-19. We are grateful for ALL the men and women who work in healthcare and have worked tirelessly to keep our communities healthy and safe during this very hard time.
We are also dedicated to supporting our incredible long-standing non-profit partners based in our hometown. Swipe Out Hunger is a fantastic organization we have worked with for years and that continues to work on the frontlines of student hunger on campuses across the country. Additionally, The Midnight Mission is located in the Skid Row area of downtown LA and is an incredible partner. They focus on providing three nutritious meals per day to the unhoused population and provide wrap-around benefits to help people get off the streets and become self-sufficient. We are proud to continue to partner with these incredible SoCal organizations.
Looking forward to 2022, we remain committed to our mission of making complete, sustainable nutrition affordable and accessible to all.
We will do this by:
- Continuing to prioritize distribution to all communities through our retail partners and ensuring that we can get affordable nutrition directly to your door so proximity to a store does not limit anyone’s ability to access nutrition.
- We will also continue to donate to food banks, homeless shelters, and causes that fight food insecurity nationally.
- We are committed to bringing our community along with us on our mission by engaging our team in community volunteerism and giving our customers the ability to donate and participate in our #SoylentForGood program.
It is an honour to lead a company and team that continues to put our mission at the center of everything we do, and as our company continues to grow and prosper, we will continue to do more.
Thank you all for your support.
Demir Vangelov
CEO
