The Hunger Site Returns to Help Millions in Need

America's Second Harvest
Saturday, 1 September 2001

Do-good dot com shuts down, is rescued and re-emerges to help fight world hunger

After five weeks of downtime, The Hunger Site - the world's leading online activism site, where over 150 million visitors have given more than 250 million cups of food to the world's hungry - is back online. Through September 30, proceeds from the site will be used by America's Second Harvest and Mercy Corps to support their efforts to aid victims and survivors of the terrorist attacks in New York City and Washington D.C.

Flirting with profitability in the months before its temporary disappearance, The Hunger Site was weighed down by over $2 million in debt, a burden that forced the company to shut its doors in July. Tim Kunin and Greg Hesterberg, co-founders of EcologyFund.com, an environmental activism site modeled after The Hunger Site, expressed immediate interest in acquiring the site, and took ownership in August.

"As longtime fans of The Hunger Site, we're excited to restore its role as a powerful force in the fight against world hunger," said Kunin. "We simply could not let The Hunger Site go away, and there are a lot of people out there who felt the same way."

With a simple click on the "Give Free Food" button at The Hunger Site, Internet users fund the purchase and distribution of staple food to the world's hungry. There is no charge to visitors - funding for food is paid by site sponsors and benefits two leading hunger relief organizations: Mercy Corps, currently active in 29 countries, and America's Second Harvest, the site's domestic partner.

"The relaunch of The Hunger Site is great news for the one billion people in our world who go to bed hungry each night," said Neal Keny-Guyer, Mercy Corps' CEO. "The Hunger Site has already allowed Mercy Corps to assist thousands in places like India, El Salvador and the Horn of Africa. We're delighted that it's back online and in good hands."

Robert Forney, CEO of America's Second Harvest, also expressed enthusiasm; "We couldn't be more pleased to have The Hunger Site back online. With more than 31 million Americans hungry or on the edge of hunger, The Hunger Site has proven to be a powerful way for people to respond to their needs. As we head into the cold-weather seasons, the resources of our hunger-relief agencies will be particularly stressed. The return of The Hunger Site is well timed and we hope to see the number of daily visitors quickly rebound."

GreaterGood.com, the leading cause-related shopping portal, where shoppers support the cause of their choice with up to 15% of every purchase at over 125 of the Web's top retailers, is also back in operation.

For more information, or to contact America's Second Harvest, see their website at: www.secondharvest.org