Toast Commits $5 Million to Combat Food Insecurity and End Childhood Hunger

BOSTON—Toast (NYSE: TOST), the all-in-one technology platform built for restaurants, today announced a $5 million philanthropic commitment over the next five years to address global food insecurity. The initiative will kick off with a U.S. partnership with No Kid Hungry, a national campaign from Share Our Strength aimed at fighting childhood hunger. Toast plans to amplify these efforts by encouraging its customers and their guests to participate via Toast Fundraising1 campaigns to support the cause, and is launching a new Toast.org grant program to scale the impact of restaurants engaged in local anti-hunger relief efforts across the U.S., along with other philanthropic partnerships and employee volunteering opportunities.

“Toast is committed to enriching the food experience for all. The negative impacts of hunger and food insecurity are profound, and we can make meaningful change when the right resources come together. At Toast, we're uniquely positioned to mobilize the entire restaurant ecosystem—our customers, our employees, our technology, and our charitable efforts—to make a tangible difference in this critical area,” said Toast CEO and Co-Founder Aman Narang. “I'm proud to commit Toast to engage more deeply in the fight against hunger, starting with our partnership with No Kid Hungry and helping to end childhood hunger.”

Food insecurity is a year-round issue, however, the summer months represent a particularly vulnerable time of year for the millions of children who rely on school meals for their daily nutritional needs. Only 13% of children receiving free or reduced-price meals during the school year have access to them during the summer.

To combat this, No Kid Hungry established the CEO Pledge to End Summer Hunger, aiming to increase the number of children receiving summertime meals from 2.8 million to 31 million nationwide annually. As part of Toast’s commitment to addressing the critical issue of summer hunger, Narang signed the CEO Pledge, joining other leaders from across industries in raising funds and awareness.

“Today, 1 in 5 kids in America live with hunger. Parents and caregivers face financial hardships that force them to choose between buying groceries or paying their bills,” said Billy Shore, Co-Founder and Executive Chair of No Kid Hungry. “Our research shows that families struggle even more during the summer. We, along with partners like Toast and the chefs and restaurants they support, are united by a common goal: feeding people in summer and all year long. We are so grateful for Toast’s efforts and look forward to the continued partnership.”

Beyond the CEO Pledge and existing initiatives, Toast will engage its people, products, philanthropy, customers, and the broader restaurant community in its hunger relief efforts, including:

• A $250,000 grant to help No Kid Hungry will support the implementation of state policies and programs designed to close the summer hunger gap.
• From June through August, every new customer referral will generate a donation from Toast to No Kid Hungry. 
• In July, Toast.org will match guest donations to No Kid Hungry campaigns set up through Toast Fundraising, up to $50,000. 
• Toast employees will volunteer at summer meal sites and Toast offices to help ensure every child has access to three healthy meals per day when school is out.

These new initiatives build on Toast’s track record of philanthropy and commitment to fighting food insecurity, including recent product enhancements enabling Toast merchants to accept SNAP/EBT payments directly on Toast devices via a partnership with Forage. Toast Fundraising, which launched in 2023, has already helped Toast customers make a difference in this space alongside their communities. In 2024 Diesel Cafe Group in Somerville, MA was able to raise over $30,000 for Community Cooks. 

“It's definitely made our ability to give back easier and made the impact larger,” said Jennifer Park, Founder and Owner of Diesel Cafe. “The fact that we can garner our community and our guests to give back as much as we do is huge.”

To learn more about No Kid Hungry, visit its website.

To learn more about Toast.org, visit its website.