Supervalu Boosts Youth Sports

Supervalu Inc. has committed $1 million to sponsor more than 1,500 youth sports teams in markets where its Acme, Albertsons, Cub Foods, Farm Fresh, Jewel-Osco and Shaws/Star Market stores operate.

The sponsorships, which began last spring, have helped to offset the cost of local youth baseball and soccer programs for kids between age 4 and 10. In all, the sponsorships have supported 1,542 teams – 761 baseball teams and 781 soccer teams – providing more than 20,000 kids with the opportunity to participate in sports.

“As ‘America’s Neighborhood Grocer,’ we are continuously looking for opportunities to give back to our local communities, particularly in areas that promote healthy lifestyles,” said Shelly Nelson, Supervalu corporate director of strategic media services. “Because diet and exercise are important to well-being, we saw this sponsorship as a complement to our focus on helping our shoppers eat well and a nice way to support stronger and healthier neighborhoods.”

The company sponsored 761 youth baseball teams in the same markets last spring.

Minneapolis-based Supervalu Inc. operates a network of 4,290 stores composed of 1,107 traditional retail stores, including 801 in-store pharmacies; 1,283 hard-discount stores, of which 907 are operated by licensee owners; and 1,900 independent stores serviced primarily by the company's traditional food distribution business.