MINNEAPOLIS — The General Mills Foundation has provided a $100,000 matching grant to support the United Way of the National Capital Area’s (U.W.N.C.A.) Child Wellness Initiative, which promotes physical fitness and nutrition among youth in Washington. The Initiative is a joint venture with the Office of the State Superintendent of Education and Mayor Adrian Fenty’s Commission on Food and Nutrition.

“Although the rates of childhood obesity are increasing at alarming rates, organizations like the U.W.N.C.A. are mobilizing to face this challenge,” said Ellen Goldberg Luger, executive director of the General Mills Foundation. “The Child Wellness Initiative is creating fun and engaging ways to provide youth and their families with the tools they need to lead healthy, balanced and active lifestyles.”

The $100,000 General Mills Foundation matching grant is part of a $400,000 four-year partnership with the U.W.N.C.A. to promote increased awareness of the importance of regular physical exercise and healthy eating habits among youth. This year’s co-grant with the U.W.N.C.A. will provide a total of $200,000 to three Washington area public schools and 10 public charter schools in the 2010-11 school year.