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Logistics gives back

Here's our monthly roundup of some of the charitable works and donations by companies in the material handling and logistics space.

Workers with boxes of supplies
  • Trailer leasing and rental company Premier Trailer Leasing has teamed up with equipment supplier Thermo King to help combat hunger during the Covid-19 pandemic. Premier will provide free rental of up to 40 Thermo King 53-foot refrigerated trailers to the hunger relief organization Feeding America to help with the storage and distribution of perishable food this summer. Thermo King is also contributing funds to Feeding America foodbanks through its "We Move Food" grant program.
  • Amid growing demand for emergency relief as a result of Covid-19, the Toyota USA Foundation awarded $2.5 million in grants to a variety of nonprofits across the nation (see photo above). Funds address crucial needs—particularly food assistance—in urban hot spots and in many communities where Toyota operates.
  • Transcontinental railway Canadian Pacific will donate $1 million to four North American charities working on the front lines to help people impacted by Covid-19. In Canada, CP will donate C$350,000 to The Frontline Fund and C$250,000 to Food Banks Canada. In the U.S., CP will contribute US$250,000 to Feeding America and up to US$150,000 in matching funds to the American Red Cross.
  • In partnership with North Texas Food Bank, Amazon.com is leveraging its transportation network of Amazon Flex drivers to deliver shelf-stable groceries directly to the doorsteps of Dallas-area families impacted by the Covid-19 crisis.
  • Logistics and transportation services giant XPO Logistics Inc. is supporting the nonprofit Soles4Souls in its mission to to provide shoes to children living below the poverty line. XPO will provide multinational logistics services free of charge by shipping four ocean containers full of shoes donated by Skechers from China to Soles4Souls distribution hubs in the U.S., Canada, and the Netherlands.
  • RLS Logistics, a third-party transportation company specializing in temperature-controlled logistics, has created Pallets 4 Plates, a program under which every pallet moved by the company triggers a charitable donation. In 2019, 305,500 plates of food were supplied to charities in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Utah.

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