Apple is teaming up with Leonardo DiCaprio, Laurene Powell Jobs and the Ford Foundation to create a new fundraiser aimed at ensuring all Americans have reliable access to food during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The project, called America’s Food Fund, launched this morning on GoFundMe with $12 million in donations and a goal to hit $15 million that will be distributed to the World Central Kitchen and Feeding America.
Apple is proud to support Chef Jose Andres’s World Central Kitchen and Feeding America,” said Apple CEO Tim Cook in a tweet this morning. “We can only overcome this crisis if we make sure that every person has the essentials they need to care for themselves, their families and the vulnerable people in their lives.”
The World Central Kitchen started its COVID-19 relief efforts by donating fresh meals to passengers stuck on cruise ships. It has expanded its efforts recently by serving 100,000 meals daily in New York, Newark, Miami, Los Angeles, Oakland, New Orleans, Little Rock, and Washington, D.C with more cities to come.
Feed America is the largest hunger-relief organization in the US. It serves 40 million Americans per year with its network of food banks, pantries and meal programs. America’s Food Fund will add other organizations as beneficiaries to the fund that are helping meet the needs of the project. The fund is meant to complement government efforts, not replace them.
Anyone can currently donate to the fund with 100% of donations (minus the 2.9% and $0.30 per donation transaction fee) will go directly to these organizations. So far the fund has already raised over $300,000 since launching this morning.
Leo and Laurene jointly donated $5 million together which was matched by Apple. Oprah and the Ford Foundation both kicked in $1 million. Other notable donations include $100,000 each from Y Combinator co-founder Jessica Livingston and the GoFundMe Team. Angel investor Ron Conway has chipped in $50,000.
If you’ve got a few dollars to chip in, you can click the button below to help America’s Food Fund get off to a roaring start.
