MANILA, Philippines - The world’s largest restaurant company yesterday donated some P35 million to the United Nations’ World Food Program to support its ongoing relief and rehabilitation efforts for the victims of the recent typhoons in the Philippines.
US-based Yum! Brands – operator of Pizza Hut and Taco Bell – turned over a check for $750,000 to the WFP for its World Hunger Relief Program (WHRP) in the Philippines to support its relief and rehabilitation programs for typhoon victims.
This donation came from proceeds of a charity dinner that Yum! chief executive officer David Novak hosted for WFP’s typhoon relief operations.
Pizza Hut and Taco Bell also launched their fund raising drive for the WHRP.
The WFP said more than 150 restaurants operated by Yum in the country will raise funds for the agency’s school meals program in Mindanao and typhoon relief operations in Luzon.
“For every P20 and P50 donation, customers get special WHRP tokens – a bookmark and desk calendar, respectively – with pop superstar Christina Aguilera’s image. For Metro Manila dine-in branches, the two restaurants are also bringing back its baller band token for every P100 donation,” the WFP said.
Grammy Award winner Aguilera is the WHRP’s global spokesperson.
“WFOP is grateful for this generosity from Pizza Hut and Taco Bell customers,” said Stephen Anderson, WFP country director in the Philippines. “It’s another example of the benefits of our global partnership with parent company Yum! Brands and it illustrates the role the private sector can play in providing humanitarian support for people in need.”
Tropical cyclones “Ondoy,” “Pepeng” and “Santi,” which hit Metro Manila, Northern, Central and Southern Luzon on Sept. 26, Sept. 30 and Oct. 29, respectively, left thousands of families homeless and destroyed livelihood and crops worth billions of pesos.
Launched in 2007, the WHRP has raised $36 million for the WFP and other hunger relief organizations and is helping to provide approximately 160 million meals and save the lives of about four million people all over the world, including Mindanao.
WFP is the world’s largest humanitarian agency. This year, it aims to feed 105 million people in 74 countries. – Helen Flores