FreeRice.com Reaches 1 Million Users

FreeRice.com, once a small seedling, has sprouted into something huge.

The online game that allows players to donate grains of rice for correctly answered trivia questions announced Thursday it had reached 1 million registered users since its founding in 2007.

“When one million people each do their small part, the collective effect is beyond impressive — it’s extraordinary,” Nancy Roman, World Food Programme Director of Communications, Public Policy and Private Partnerships, said in the release. “Beyond the remarkable benefits for those most in need, this is a significant milestone for WFP in our mission to engage millions of people online in the fight against hunger.”

Its appeal is simple: Answer a vocabulary question correctly, and 10 grains of rice are donated to the United Nations World Food Programme.

And that simplicity is likely part of its popularity and success. Since its beginning, an estimated 100 billion grains of rice have been donated from players in 179 countries by answering 2.5 million trivia questions. According to the release, that's enough to feed nearly 5 million people for a day.

The money FreeRice.com uses to purchase the rice comes from advertisers on the site. Since June 2011, the game has also supported the World Food Programme's efforts in Cambodia, purchasing all the rice locally to be used in school meal programs.

That's one small grain making a global difference. Visit FreeRice.com to play the game and support the fight against hunger.