Dole, Giant-Carlisle Donate Salad Bars to Schools

Giant Food Stores and Dole Food Co. have donated two salad bars to schools in the Parkland School District in Pennsylvania’s semi-metropolitan Lehigh Valley. The donation, which took place at Fogelsville Elementary School in Breinigsville, was part of the “Let’s Move Salad Bars to Schools” initiative, which to date has contributed more than 2,491 salad bars serving more than 1,245,500 children across the United States.

“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, VP, sales and merchandising, at Carlisle, Pa.-based Giant/Martin’s, a division of Ahold USA. “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.”

“Salad bar donations are a natural extension of Dole’s ongoing commitment to childhood nutrition,” noted Marty Ordman, VP of marketing and corporate communications at Westlake Village, Calif.-based Dole. “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.”

Let’s Move Salad Bars to Schools, a grass-roots public health initiative working in support of Mrs. Obama’s “Let’s Move!” initiative, debuted in November 2010 with the aim of significantly increasing the number of salad bars in U.S. schools. The initiative helps promote the USDA’s latest nutritional standards, which include whole grains, fruits and vegetables, and flavored school milk that’s lower in sugar and calories.

Celebrating its 90th anniversary this year, Giant/Martin’s operates 200 grocery stores in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia under the Giant Food Stores and Martin’s Food Markets banners, employing more than 31,000 associates.