Kroger’s giving hope a hand campaign commits $3 million toward breast cancer awareness

CINCINNATI — For the sixth consecutive year, Kroger has committed $3 million in donations for local breast cancer initiatives across the country to support National Breast Cancer Awareness month in October as part of its Giving Hope a Hand initiative. 

Kroger received a 2012 Gold HALO award from the Cause Marketing Forum for the company’s annual Giving Hope a Hand campaign. The effort kicked off in stores on Sept. 23 and features 48 Kroger associates who are breast cancer survivors on marketing materials and custom packages of national and Kroger corporate brand products. These women share their survivor stories on the packaging of select items sold exclusively in Kroger’s family of stores. Kroger associate Janie Weber, who works as a front end/floral clerk for Dillons Division in Newton, Kansas, is featured this year on Kroger bottled water.

“The Kroger family applauds the willingness of our associates to share their personal stories as breast cancer survivors,” stated David Dillon, Kroger’s chairman and CEO. “Their participation in this unique campaign inspires, educates and offers courage to our customers and other associates who are affected by this disease.”

At the end of this year, Kroger will have donated more than $21 million to support breast cancer research, education and services since Giving Hope a Hand began in 2006.

Kroger’s campaign features a storewide sales promotion of popular items, many of which will feature exclusive, specially marked pink packaging. This year, 1,600 items — including Kroger’s own products and popular items from Kroger partners, such as Energizer, Freschetta, General Mills, Greenlite, Kellogg’s, Kimberly Clark, Kraft, Pepsi, Purina, Sargento and SC Johnson — will be marked with special shelf tags to highlight participation. The full list of partners can be viewed at SharingCourage.com/Our-Partners.aspx.