FT. WORTH, Texas, Aug. 11 /PRNewswire/ -- The Dannon Company, Inc. awarded Tarrant Area Food Bank $30,000 in support of its Operation Frontline nutrition program, which serves families and their children in north central Texas. The Dannon Next Generation Nutrition Grant is aimed at promoting childhood nutrition education programs in Tarrant County.
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Operation Frontline is Tarrant Area Food Bank's cornerstone nutrition program, which uses cooking classes to teach nutrition to low-income families so they can maintain excellent nutrition on a limited budget. The Food Bank provides cooking classes, led by volunteer chefs and nutritionists, in partnership with Share Our Strength, a national non-profit focused on ending childhood hunger in the United States.
"Our innovative approach to nutrition gives families the skills to prepare nutritious and low-cost meals to improve their families' health," said Bo Soderbergh, executive director, Tarrant Area Food Bank. "We're grateful for Dannon's support, which will help us continue Operation Frontline for its third year and make a difference in the lives of low-income families in north central Texas."
With funding from The Dannon Company, Tarrant Area Food Bank will provide a long-term solution to hunger and poor nutrition by teaching healthy eating, cooking, food safety, budgeting, menu planning and grocery shopping through a six-week series of hands-on classes. Since the program's start in 2007, nearly 500 low-income families have graduated with new knowledge that will help them eat well and stay healthy. This year, the Food Bank estimates that it will serve more than 325 area families and their children.
"I am pleased that a company like Dannon understands the importance of proper nutrition and is demonstrating it through the support of the Tarrant Area Food Bank," said State Representative Mark Shelton.
As a result of Dannon's support, the Next Generation Nutrition Grant-funded programs have reached more than 1,100 children in Tarrant County during the last three years and have produced positive results. Among participants in the 2006 grant recipient program, Big Brothers Big Sisters of North Texas' Eating Well Together reported an 83% increase in those who took part in organized physical education and a 60% increase in those who drank milk twice per day.
The alarming epidemic of obesity among children and adolescents throughout the nation is jeopardizing the future health of our youth. The Office of the Surgeon General reports that overweight adolescents have a 70 percent chance of becoming overweight or obese adults nationally. Thirty-two percent of Texas high-school students were overweight or obese according to the most recent available data from the Texas Department of Health Services.
"Dannon is thrilled that we can support a program that has been successful in teaching the community life-long skills to eating well and staying healthy," said Gayle Binney, Dannon's corporate responsibility manager. "Programs like Operation Frontline are key to establishing a foundation for healthy behaviors that will affect children and their families for years to come.
Today's grant ceremony was held at Dannon's plant facility in Fort Worth, Texas, which is celebrating its 30(th) anniversary this year. Attendees at the grant event included: State Representative Mark Shelton, Janie Havel, the North Texas regional representative for Gov. Rick Perry's office; Alex Witschey of State Senator Wendy Davis' office; and Donald Fisher, the Leadership and Workforce Development coordinator with the Tarrant County Department of Public Health.
Dannon established the Dannon Next Generation Nutrition Grants in 2006 to promote childhood nutrition education in each of the four communities where a Dannon facility is located. As part of the grant, Dannon contributes $30,000 to four non-profit organizations ($120,000 in total) in Auglaize County, Ohio; Salt Lake County, Utah; Tarrant County, Texas; and Westchester County, N.Y., for programs that nurture healthy eating habits among children. This year, Dannon's parent company, Danone, will celebrate its 90(th) anniversary and its longtime mission to bring health through nutritious food.
About Tarrant Area Food Bank
Tarrant Area Food Bank works to eliminate hunger in Fort Worth and 13 surrounding counties by providing food, education and other resources to a network of partner agencies and their communities. In its 17-year history, Tarrant Area Food Bank has distributed more than 260 million pounds of food and household products to a network of 300 hunger-relief agencies.
In the late 1990s, the Food Bank began offering special programs to complement its food distribution program and today offers nutrition education to individuals and families receiving food assistance, including two different feeding programs for children and free culinary job training for low-income adults. For more information about Tarrant Area Food Bank, visit www.tafb.org.
About The Dannon Company
The Dannon Company is America's founding national yogurt company and continually leverages its expertise to develop and market innovative cultured fresh dairy products in the United States. Headquartered in White Plains, N.Y., Dannon has plants in Minster, Ohio, Fort Worth, Texas, and West Jordan, Utah and produces approximately 100 different types of flavors, styles and sizes of cultured fresh dairy products. Dannon is a subsidiary of Danone, one of the world's leading producers of packaged foods and beverages, and Dannon is the top-selling brand of yogurt products worldwide, sold under the names Dannon and Danone.
With a strong commitment to high-quality, wholesome, nutritious and innovative products, The Dannon Company is committed to encouraging healthy eating and healthy living. Danone is a recognized leader for its contributions to nutrition and health and was ranked best in class in a 2008 JPMorgan & Insight Investment study about the response of the world's largest food companies to obesity and health-related concerns. This commitment is also illustrated through The Dannon Company's support of the Dannon Institute, an independent, non-profit foundation dedicated to promoting research, education, and communication about the links between nutrition, diet and health. For more information, please visit www.dannon.com.
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