DEERFIELD, ILL. — The Mondelez International Foundation has launched three well-being programs aimed at bringing nutrition education, active play and fresh foods to children and their families in Mexico, South Africa and the United States. The programs are part of the company’s multi-year, $50 million commitment to promote healthy lifestyles and address obesity.
 |
| Nicole Robinson, president of the Mondelez International Foundation |
“The three new well-being programs build on our ongoing commitment to community well-being and the fight against obesity, particularly among children,” said Nicole Robinson, president of the Mondelez International Foundation. “They are perfectly aligned with United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals in the areas of addressing malnutrition and promoting good health and well-being. As many schools begin a new term, we’ll be working alongside our community partners, teachers and parents to establish the foundation for a healthy school year by promoting nutrition basics, encouraging active lifestyles and expanding access to nutritious foods.”
Mondelez said its Foundation and partners in Mexico, South Africa and the United States will become involved in a number of ways during the next four years.
In Mexico, Mondelez has partnered with Save the Children, an organization focused on improving nutrition and physical activity by promoting active play, nutrition education and gardening to approximately 20,000 children and families. The program is designed for children ages 2-13 and will operate in early childhood development centers and primary schools.
In South Africa, Mondelez is involved with INMED Partnerships for Children. INMED’s efforts, which include school-based gardens, have improved children’s body mass index (B.M.I.) and vegetable consumption in Brazil. The program now will look to reach 50,000 to 75,000 children, parents and community members across 100 schools in South Africa.
Finally, in the United States, Mondelez will participate in After-School All-Stars, Mondelez’s first after-school program geared to middle school students. After-School All-Stars will expand its middle school program to offer nutrition education, cooking classes, urban vegetable gardens and will add B.M.I. tracking to its program evaluation. The program will reach children and families in more than 150 schools in 12 U.S. locations.
With the addition of the new partnerships, the Foundation’s collective program now will reach more than 1 million children and families across 14 countries. Each community partnership will track progress against a universal set of metrics critical to achieving well-being: nutrition education, physical activity and access to nutritious foods. The metrics were developed with community partners and public health experts convened by the Mondelez International Foundation in 2013. To date, partnerships in Australia, Brazil, China, India and Russia are on track to deliver results against these global healthy lifestyle metrics, Mondelez said.
