Pepsi, Walmart offer free food to D.C. kids

Feed The Children, PepsiCo and Walmart partnered with Central Union Mission in Washington, D.C. this week to distribute two tractor-trailers full of food and essentials to help 800 area children and families in need.

PepsiCo, a longtime Feed The Children partner, donated Frito-Lay brand snacks, Quaker brand products and Pepsi brand beverages while Walmart, with the assistance of its suppliers, provided a loaf of bread and a five pound bag of apples and oranges to each of the 800 families.

Feed The Children partner agency Central Union Mission pre-identified families to receive the donations. Each family also received a 25-pound box of food, a 10-pound box of personal care items and AVON products. The boxes are designed to help support a family of four for up to one week.　

The distribution was part of Feed The Children's Americans Feeding Americans Caravan, which has helped more than 445,000 families across the country since it began in 2009.

According to the group, nearly one in three children living in Washington, D.C. is considered impoverished.

"Many of the families we serve on the Americans Feeding Americans Caravan are making hard choices between paying bills and feeding their families," said Kevin Hagan , Feed The Children president and CEO. "With support from PepsiCo and Walmart we are helping to ease the burden for families struggling in this economy."

Feed The Children will also be providing families with information and resources to give them the opportunity to receive additional nutritional support in their local community through USDA's Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) program.