Keyword/Tag: Partners

COVID-19 Update from Brighter Bites

Posted on March 20, 2020 by -

 

Dear Friends,

We are all witnessing and living through one of the most challenging times in modern history.

Like all of you, Brighter Bites is adapting to the new reality brought on by the coronavirus outbreak.

Our number one priority is the health and well-being of our employees and the families and communities we serve. For that reason, we are following protocols to limit the spread of the COVID-19 virus.

 

 

Brighter Bites understands that families need fresh, nutrient-rich food to keep them healthy, and we are making every effort to find distribution mechanisms to ensure they receive it.

While the schools we partner with are closed, Brighter Bites is working with community stakeholders to develop alternative opportunities for distributing produce to families in the cities where we operate.

 

 

We are also working with our produce partner suppliers to redirect donated produce to our local food banks and working with our supply chain to help continue that process moving forward.When we aren’t able to distribute fresh produce, we are making nutrition education and healthy recipes available to our families electronically to help them make the most of the food they do have while they are at home with their children. You can access healthy recipes here and tips and tools for cooking at home here.

Here are some examples of how Brighter Bites is supporting our communities this week:

 

Our Southwest Florida team distributed fresh produce to more than 500 families at the Bethel Assembly of God in Immokalee, FL with the help of so many community partners. Harry Chapin Food Bank, Southern Specialties, Freedom Fresh, and B&W Quality Growers collectively donated 12 different produce items. The Blue Zones Project in SWFL donated reusable bags. Collier County Schools and the Benison Center made the event possible.

 

Staff and volunteers in Austin packed 830 bags of fresh fruits and vegetables for families whose children attend Cook, T.A. Brown, and Harris Elementary Schools in Austin ISD. Thanks to Hardie’s Fresh Food for their incredible support during this challenging time.

 

At PS 151Q in Woodside, Queens we provided 300+ Brighter Bites families and local community members with 4,586lbs of organic grapes, oranges, and pantry bags pre-packed by our incredible partners at City Harvest. 

 

We are living in a rapidly changing environment and in the coming weeks we’ll be making our best efforts to identify ways to regularly support our families with fresh, healthy foods and nutrition education alongside our local food banks and city partners. Above all else, the health and safety of our employees, families and communities will remain our focus.

Brighter Bites is grateful for the continued support and understanding from our families, partners, donors, supporters, and stakeholders. As uncertain as things are, we know we will get through this by working together.

We wish you and your family good health and safety as we navigate the coming weeks.

Yours sincerely,
The Brighter Bites Team

Press Release: Brighter Bites Announces Partnership with The Produce Moms

Posted on December 2, 2019 by -

December 2, 2019 – A little more than a year ago, The Produce Moms® (TPM) launched their now popular podcast with their first guest, Lisa Helfman, founder of Brighter Bites, the nonprofit that provides families and teachers in under-served communities with fresh fruits and vegetables and nutrition education to decrease diet-related chronic disease.  This week, The Produce Moms and Brighter Bites announced their newly formed alignment with  the podcast’s 75th episode featuring Lori Taylor, CEO & founder of The Produce Moms interviewing Rich Dachman, CEO of Brighter Bites, and discussing the focus and importance of the partnership from the perspective of both organizations.

Lori Taylor has long been a fan of Brighter Bites.  “When I heard about Brighter Bites and met Lisa, I was immediately drawn to the great work Brighter Bites is doing.  The mantra and ethos of Brighter Bites is creating communities of health through fresh food and I love that!  I’m so enthusiastic to align with Brighter Bites, support their organization and help leverage TPM’s platform to better advance the program, and inform more folks about this amazing work they’re doing.”

In 2012, Taylor started The Produce Moms as an idea and blog with a mission to get Americans to eat more fruits and vegetables.  TPM has evolved into a global community of more than 1.4 million users in all 50 states and over 30 countries, nearly 100 brand partnerships with grocers and suppliers, a North American relationship with Nickelodeon and Viacom and a national partnership with Kroger.  “As TPM has grown, we wanted to make sure we were giving back, and I feel like the most important thing we can do right now is support Brighter Bites.  We can see their model working!  Brighter Bites is unique in the fact that they have the data to show that the program is working.  Two years after participating in the program, an average Brighter Bites family consumes 19 additional servings of fresh fruits and vegetables per week, and they aren’t even receiving the free produce anymore!”

Since its inception in 2012, Brighter Bites has delivered over 25 million pounds of fresh produce to school children and their families in six cities around the U.S., with another three to four cities coming on line in the next two years.  “Exposure means everything to us in our efforts to expand”, says Dachman.  “Our strategic alliance with The Produce Moms allows us to tap into an established platform with the wide produce industry and consumer audience cultivated by Lori and the TPM team.  We recognize the importance of having The Produce Moms army behind us as we continue to build!”

Dachman and Taylor invite you to hear more about Brighter Bites, The Produce Moms, and the commitment the two organizations have made to encourage produce organizations to come together.  Dachman sums it up by saying, “Instead of competing with each other, let’s join forces to promote healthy eating and snacking through increased consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables.”  Tune in to episode 75 of The Produce Mom’s Podcast here: https://www.theproducemoms.com/2019/11/20/episode-75-brighter-bites-ceo-rich-dachman/

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About THE PRODUCE MOMS®

THE PRODUCE MOMS, led by Lori Taylor, is a community of passionate fresh produce advocates with a mission to inspire everyone, especially children, to eat more fruits and vegetables. THE PRODUCE MOMS educates consumers about fresh produce, introduces them to produce brands, engages the produce industry with consumers in inspiring conversations, and promotes public policy to protect and increase the availability of fresh produce at American schools.  TheProduceMoms.com Join the #ProduceChallengeToday! 

 

About BRIGHTER BITES

Brighter Bites is a nonprofit that creates communities of health through fresh food with the goal of changing behavior among children and their families to prevent obesity and achieve long-term health. Brighter Bites is an evidence-based, multi-component elementary school, preschool, and summer camp program that utilizes reliable access to fruits and vegetables, nutrition education, and consistent exposure to recipes and messages that feature fresh food. Each week families and teachers participating in Brighter Bites receive two bags containing approximately 50 servings of eight to 12 different fresh produce items along with nutrition education materials and a recipe sample to see how good fresh produce tastes. Since 2012, Brighter Bites has provided more than 25 million pounds of produce and 100,000s of nutrition education materials to more than 275,000 individuals (including teachers) in Houston, Dallas, Austin, New York City, the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area, and Southwest Florida. To learn more visit BrighterBites.org.

Contact for THE PRODUCE MOMS®
Terri Mouton
818-929-4255
Contact for BRIGHTER BITES
Stefanie Cousins
919-360-4156
This story was published in the following publications:

Brighter Bites Names Top Donor Partners of 2018-19

Posted on September 23, 2019 by -

Today, Brighter Bites announces its top donor partners from across the produce industry.

Together these eight organizations helped donate produce that Brighter Bites distributed to 27,000 families in Houston, Dallas, Austin, New York City, the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, and Southwest Florida during the 2018-19 academic year.

Brighter Bites Top Donor Partners are:
• The Coastal Companies Foundation
• D’Arrigo Bros. of New York
• Hardie’s Fresh Foods
• Lipman Family Farms
• Mann Packing
• Southern Specialties
• Sysco Freshpoint
• Taylor Farms Texas

Brighter Bites would not be possible without the remaining produce and logistical support that come from our Feeding America Food Bank partners who include the Houston Food Bank, North Texas Food Bank, City Harvest, Capital Area Food Bank, and Harry Chapin Food Bank.

“Our ability to provide fresh fruits and vegetables to our families is completely dependent on the support of our partners,” said Brighter Bites CEO Rich Dachman. “The generous donations of produce from these partners and other suppliers, alongside our extraordinary partnerships with our food banks, allows us to achieve our mission of improving the health of our society, especially those who have fewer resources. I believe our industry has a responsibility to utilize its produce to fight the childhood obesity epidemic and improve health outcomes. I challenge all in the industry to get involved. Brighter Bites is a great place to start so we can scale our program to reach even more communities in need of fresh food and better health.”

 

A student at “Joe” May Elementary School in Dallas enjoys apples donated to Brighter Bites by Taylor Farms Texas.

 

This Brighter Bites announcement was reported by the following publications:

The Produce News
The Packer
Perishable News
And Now U Know

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fantastic Partners in Florida

Posted on April 4, 2019 by -

Brighter Bites is fortunate to work closely with several incredible partners in Southwest Florida, including the Harry Chapin Food Bank, Lipman Family Farms, Southern Specialties, and The Blue Zones Project. Get to know a little about each of the organizations below!

The Harry Chapin Food Bank, a leading force for ending hunger in Southwest Florida, provides Brighter Bites with produce and handles all of our logistics. They additionally welcomed our team into their Naples, FL office space, where our three staff members handle the behind-the-scenes work of running Brighter Bites.

Our friends from the Harry Chapin Food Bank!

Lipman Family Farms is America’s largest field tomato grower and the lead funder of our program in Southwest Florida. Lipman is always willing to lend a helping hand with extra produce and logistics support when our program needs it. Juan Vila is one of Lipman’s super star employees who always goes above and beyond to make sure Brighter Bites gets all produce to the schools on time.

Southwest Florida Program Director Marcela Romero and Senior Program Director Mike Pomeroy take a tour of Lipman Family Farms

Southern Specialties is a produce distributor who helps ensure Brighter Bites gets to share a wide variety of produce with our families so they can try fruits and veggies they’ve never tasted before. Southern Specialties has introduced our families to sugar snap peas, white asparagus, and escarole, just to name a few!

A student at RCMA Immokalee Community School shows off some asparagus donated by Southern Specialties

We’re also excited to partner with the Southwest Florida chapter of The Blue Zones Project, a community-by-community initiative designed to enable community members to live longer, happier lives with lower rates of chronic diseases and a higher quality of life. The Blue Zones Project is a great community partner who always invites us to their events and help us spread the word about Brighter Bites in the region.

Join us in thanking our incredible Southwest Florida partners!

Partner Spotlight: Harry Chapin Food Bank and Lipman Family Farms

Posted on April 26, 2018 by -

Brighter Bites is so excited about our expansion to Southwest Florida, where we are currently creating communities of health through fresh food in two Collier County elementary schools. But no Brighter Bites community would be complete without our amazing local partners, and we have two of them in Southwest Florida to celebrate today: Lipman Family Farms and Harry Chapin Food Bank!

Lipman Family Farms is America’s largest field tomato grower and a trusted staple in the Southwest Florida community. Lipman Family Farms was founded under a different name in the 1930’s, but its dedication to building lasting relationships with its customers and being responsible for the natural environment and the health of the families it works with has stayed the same. Brighter Bites has been friends with Lipman for years, previously receiving tomatoes for our families in Houston, Dallas, and Austin. We’re so excited to now be working with Lipman in their own backyard!

The Harry Chapin Food Bank‘s mission is to lead its community in the fight to end hunger. With Brighter Bites, it is able to support its priority of emphasizing the importance of healthy choices for the families it serves. The Harry Chapin Food Bank was founded in 1983 and serves five Southwest Florida counties. Every week, the Harry Chapin Food Bank provides food for over 28,000 individuals. We are so excited to be working with such an important organization for Southwest Florida families.

We can’t wait to see what the future holds for Brighter Bites with our new partners. We know that it will certainly be brighter with these folks by our side!

We Heart our NYC Partners

Posted on March 23, 2018 by -

Brighter Bites is so lucky to work with amazing partners across the country that help us create communities of health through fresh food. Two of these amazing partners, City Harvest and D’Arrigo Bros. Co. of New York, work hand in hand with our Brighter Bites NYC team to make sure families in the Big Apple have access to produce during Brighter Bites programming.

City Harvest
City Harvest pioneered food rescue in New York City in the early ’80’s, recognizing the second life excess food could serve in filling the plates of New York’s neediest residents. City Harvest has helped Brighter Bites find produce across New York City that would otherwise go to waste. Our teamwork has allowed us to provide approximately 100,000 pounds of produce to New York families since the Brighter Bites NYC launch in 2017.

 

D’Arrigo Bros. Co. of New York
D’Arrigo Bros. Co. of New York is one of the largest wholesale produce suppliers in the New York Metro area. D’Arrigo often finds itself over-supplied with produce, which is where Brighter Bites comes in. Our friends at D’Arrigo work hard to select excess produce items for Brighter Bites families each week, paying special attention to supply produce items our families may never have had access to before. Instead of letting these items going to waste, D’Arrigo helps these produce items nourish our families. In addition to supplying Brighter Bites with incredible produce, D’Arrigo recently gave a generous donation to support Brighter Bites’ efforts to create healthy communities everywhere we go. We are so thankful!

Source: D’Arrigo Bros. Co. of New York, Inc.

 

It’s Avocado Week!

Posted on March 8, 2018 by -

Brighter Bites is celebrating our brand new partnership with Avocados From Mexico and Mission Produce with Avocado Week, a week-long celebration of all things avocado! Thanks to a generous donation from Mission Produce, each Brighter Bites family is taking home two Hass avocados in their weekly produce bags. That adds up to almost 24,000 avocados!

Hass avocados are the only avocados in the world that are available 365 days a year. These beauties — which are technically berries…who knew? — are packed with nearly 20 vitamins and minerals and are naturally free of sodium and cholesterol. Avocados are also a great source of fiber and unsaturated (think “good”) fat, which means they’ll keep you full for a long time!

In addition to avocados, Brighter Bites families also went home with nutrition education information, including all the best tips and tricks for getting the most out of avocados, thanks to Avocados From Mexico. Did you know that you can use a brown bag and some bananas to ripen an avocado faster? You can also swap out half the butter in a baking recipe with an equal amount of mashed ripe avocado to decrease the saturated fat content. These gems are so versatile!

If we’ve left you craving some avocado goodness, head over to our Make Everyday an Avocado Day! recipe post for a variety of recipes incorporating your new favorite fruit!

Partner Spotlight: Hardie’s Fresh Foods

Posted on November 22, 2017 by -

Recently, Brighter Bites Austin wrapped up a successful fall session of programming, propelled by culinary creativity, generous produce donations from growers that work with FreshPoint South Texas, and our new collaborative partnership with Hardie’s Fresh Foods.

Radames Leal, Transportation Manager (L) and Tony Medina, Operations Manager (R)

On top of delivering over 50 servings of fresh fruits and vegetables—including cantaloupe, gold kiwi, burgundy lettuce, medley tomatoes, and pears—each week to approximately 750 participants at six schools in the Austin Independent School District, the team enhanced distributions with educational recipe displays and guided culinary literacy through cooking demonstrations at three school sites. As always, inspirational school leaders, teachers, volunteers, and parents fueled the team’s continued programming excellence. Week after week of programming, Brighter Bites teachers and parents introduced their students and children to an average of nine varieties of produce, all of which entered through Hardie’s Fresh Foods’ warehouse doors before being re-packed and delivered to school sites, thanks to their exceptional warehouse and transportation teams.

Sidney Krzywonsky, Receiver

David Ibarra, Warehouse Team Member, builds and stages all Brighter Bites mixed pallets

Jose Martinez, Driver, delivers produce to Brighter Bites schools

Paike Morris, Driver, delivers produce to Brighter Bites schools

We could not be more grateful to Hardie’s Fresh Foods for their warm, enthusiastic welcome and incredible support of our program and mission. Many thanks to FreshPoint South Texas, Feeding Texas, and Hardie’s Fresh Foods for your shared passion and partnership.

Alex Rangel, Transportation Supervisor

 

David McCoy, General Manager

Brian Williams, Receiver

Gaudencio Bautista, Receiver