BREINIGSVILLE, Pa.– Dole Food Company and Giant Food Stores were joined by Congressman Charlie Dent and State Rep. Ryan Mackenzie to celebrate the donation of two salad bars to schools in the Parkland School District at the Fogelsville Elementary School. The salad bars were donated as a part of the First Lady’s Let’s Move Salad Bars to Schools initiative, which has donated more than 2,491 salad bars serving more than 1,245,500 children across the country.
The event underscored the practical actions schools can take to combat the growing obesity epidemic through healthy lunch options. As schools work diligently to comply with the USDA new nutrition standards for school lunches, salad bars serve as a reasonably priced, attractive option to increase our students’ consumption of fruits and vegetables.
“Salad bar donations are a natural extension of Dole’s ongoing commitment to childhood nutrition,” said Marty Ordman, Dole’s Vice President of Marketing and Corporate Communications. “Giant Food Stores have been a part of Pennsylvania communities for over 90 years. Their dedication to making sure that young people are living healthier lives matches our passion at Dole. We are proud to partner with them for this project.”
“GIANT has a long-standing commitment to eradicate hunger and improve the quality of life for children in addition to working with hundreds of local organizations annually,” said Jeff Beaulieu, Vice President, Sales and Merchandising, Giant Food Stores. “When children have the chance to sample fresh fruits and vegetables at school, they’re more likely to ask for them at home. This is a wonderful example of how schools and businesses can work together to create healthier communities.”
In November 2010, Let’s Move Salad Bars to Schools, a grassroots public health initiative working in support of First Lady Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move! Initiative was created. The partners of the initiative, including Dole, share a vision to significantly increase the number of salad bars in schools across the country until every child has the choice of healthy fruits and vegetables every day at school. This initiative goes hand in hand with the new standards from USDA, which aims to offer more nutritious choices for kids, including whole grains, fruits and vegetables, and school flavored milk that is lower in sugar and calories than ever before.
About Parkland School District
The Parkland School District is located in a suburban-rural setting approximately 60 miles north of Philadelphia and 70 miles west of New York City in the semi-metropolitan region known as the Lehigh Valley. The 2012-13 student enrollment is approximately 9,300 students and the district operates with the mission of Educating for Success, Inspiring Excellence for all students. The 72 square miles of the Parkland School District encompass three townships – North Whitehall, South Whitehall and Upper Macungie – along with a small portion of the city of Allentown. The total population is approximately 50,000. The district’s wide socio-economic range results from its bordering the city of Allentown on the southeast and extending to farmlands at the western and northern extremities. The district is also home to many businesses with 40% of the tax base consisting of commercial/industrial tenants.
About Dole Food Company
Dole Food Company, with 2012 revenues of $4.2 billion, is one of the world’s largest producers and marketers of high-quality fresh fruit and fresh vegetables. Dole is an industry leader in many of the products it sells, as well as in nutrition education and research. For more information, please visit www.dole.com.
About GIANT/MARTIN’S
Celebrating its 90th anniversary in 2013, GIANT/MARTIN’S, headquartered in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, operates 200 grocery stores in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia, under the names of GIANT Food Stores and MARTIN’S Food Markets. GIANT/MARTIN’S employs more than 31,000 associates. Founded in 1923, GIANT and MARTIN’S have a long-standing commitment to eradicate hunger and improve the quality of life for children in addition to working with hundreds of local organizations annually. The company was recognized for its leadership in the fight against hunger with the Golden Grocer Award by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. In addition, GIANT/MARTIN’S is one of the top ten fund-raisers in the country for local Children’s Miracle Network hospitals. GIANT and MARTIN’S are Ahold companies. For more information visit www.GiantFoodStores.com and www.MartinsFoods.com. Find us on Facebook at facebook.com/giantfoodstores and facebook.com/martinsfoods.
Source: Dole Food Company