The National Restaurant Association announced January 29 that the Kellogg Company has become a new sponsor of the NRA’s award-winning Kids LiveWell program, a voluntary industry-wide initiative designed to help parents make the healthful choice the easy choice for their children when dining out. The NRA applauded the foodservice supplier for its commitment to partner with restaurants in providing a growing selection of healthful choices on kids’ menus.
“The Kellogg Company is a natural partner for us and offers exciting opportunities as we work with our members to provide healthful, innovative menu items for children,” says Joan McGlockton, vice president, Industry Affairs & Food Policy, National Restaurant Association. “Kellogg’s expansive reach across the foodservice industry offers restaurants great options and tremendous flexibility in meeting the Kids LiveWell nutrition standards, which will allow us to grow the program and build on our success of providing healthful choices for families.”
“By forging a partnership with the Kids LiveWell program, the Kellogg Company continues our commitment to offer nutritious, flexible meal options for kids and their parents at and away from home,” says Dennis Moy, customer marketing manager, Kellogg Company. “Our branded products offer a range of nutritious choices that appeal to both kids and parents. Kellogg understands consumers’ demand for healthy menu options and we’re happy to help restaurant operators meet these needs.”
As a program partner, Kellogg will work hand-in-hand with restaurants to incorporate products into menu options. Kellogg offers multiple product choices that can help operators meet the Kids LiveWell criteria. With the growing demand for nutritious alternatives, the following solutions help to incorporate alternatives into a well-balanced meal: Morningstar Farms and Gardenburger veggie products; Keebler Animal Crackers; Frosted Mini-Wheats Little Bites Cinnamon cereal bowl packs; and Kellogg’s Nutri-Grain Cereal Bars, all of which offer enhanced nutrition such as whole grain, fiber, vitamins, and minerals and/or lean protein.
The NRA launched Kids LiveWell in 2011 to help restaurants highlight their better-for-you menu choices for children. To join the program, restaurants agree to offer and promote a selection of menu items that meet nutrition criteria based on leading health organizations’ scientific recommendations, including the USDA Dietary Guidelines. The initiative focuses on increasing consumption of fruit and vegetables, lean protein, whole grains and low-fat dairy, and limiting total calories, unhealthy fats, sugar, and sodium. Currently, Kids LiveWell includes more than 120 restaurant brands representing more than 33,000 locations nationwide.
The NRA developed Kids LiveWell in collaboration with Healthy Dining, whose team of registered dietitians works with restaurants to identify and validate the qualifying menu choices. Participating restaurants and their qualifying items can be found on HealthyDiningFinder.com, and also via a free Kids LiveWell App in the Android Market and iTunes app store.
