Dole Food Company Partners with Hy-Vee Food Stores to Donate 5 Salad Bars in Central Iowa
September 14, 2012 | News & Press Releases
Local Company Partners with Largest Producer of Fruits and Vegetables to Improve School Lunch Options for Iowa Students
Boone, IA-- Dole Food Company and Hy-Vee Food Stores today celebrated the donation of five salad bars to schools in the central Iowa area at the United Community School in Boone, Iowa. 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 1,440 salad bars serving more than 720,000 children across the country.
In addition to United Community, Hy-Vee and Dole have donated salad bars to schools in Centerville, Fairfield, Denison and Shenandoah.
The event today 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.
As with so many places throughout the U.S., childhood obesity rates are a serious concern in the state of Iowa. As of 2011, Iowa was named the 20th most obese state in the country, according to the eighth annual F as in Fat: How Obesity Threatens America's Future 2011 report from the Robert Woodruff Johnson Foundation. Research has indicated that the widespread availability and relatively low cost of junk food in schools has contributed significantly to the rise of obesity.
“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. “Hy-Vee has been a part of Iowa communities since the 1930s. 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.”
“Education and experience go hand-in-hand in the development of good eating habits,” said Jason Sheridan, assistant vice president, produce operations for Hy-Vee, Inc. “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 United Community School District
United Community School District is located between Ames and Boone on Highway 30. The district is made up of 133 square miles of agricultural, residential and business properties. United, provides a quality education for students through strong instructional skills of the staff, innovative educational opportunities, and by nurturing parent and community partnerships. We have active P.T.O. organizations, and patron advisory boards. Our proximity to Iowa State University also allows us to work closely and share ideas with student teachers, work study students, tutors and professors.
About Dole Food Company
Dole, with 2011 net revenues of $6.9 billion, is the world’s largest producer and marketer of high-quality fresh fruit and fresh vegetables, and is the leading producer of organic bananas. Dole markets a growing line of packaged and frozen fruit and is a produce industry leader in nutrition education and research.