Nestlé Canada signs up to get food to kids in need
The Nestlé for Healthier Kids initiative was launched last year to help 50 million children around the world lead healthier lives by 2030 through the support of local communities and their health promotion goals, in addition to continued improvements to Nestlé food and beverage portfolio.
With over 300,000 children in Canada struggling to get food every month, Nestlé Canada has teamed up with Food Banks Canada to help those kids in need.
“We care about the communities where we live and work and contributing to the health of families is core to our purpose,” said Jeff Hamilton, CEO of Nestlé Canada.
“We are proud to partner with Food Banks Canada to support thousands of families in need by providing them with access to healthy food and the nutrition information they need to build life-long healthy habits.”
Aimed at kids
The Nestlé for Healthier Kids initiative will financially support the After the Bell Program, which supplies kids in need with food beyond school hours.
For most kids, the last day of school marks the beginning of exciting summer holidays; for many, it means the end of the critical in-school meal programs.
“[Food Banks Canada aims] to deliver 130,000 healthy food packs to children experiencing hunger during the summer months, when school based food programs are closed,” said Hatch.
The packs contain child-friendly, nutritious foods, including cereal, oatmeal, crackers and raisins, along with perishable items such as apples, cheese and yogurt.
Nestlé’s initiative will also contribute towards the expansion of the Food Explorers Cooking Club, which delivers education and skills-building programming to kids who access the services of food banks or who are at risk of experiencing food insecurity.
The program focuses on building knowledge and confidence around food, kitchen skills, meal preparation and nutrition to empower kids to understand how to cook and make positive decisions about what they eat.
“With Nestlé’s support, we will expand the Food Explorers Cooking club program to 6-8 year olds, providing more children and their families with hands-on skills and knowledge for planning and cooking nutritious meals,” added Hatch.
