Kellogg's Teams With Jimmy Butler & Quvenzhane Wallis To Fight Childhood Hunger

BATTLE CREEK, Mich., March 2, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- 

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Breakfast is considered the most important meal of the day, but nearly one-in-five kids nationwide struggles with hunger and may go without it every day¹. To help solve that issue, Kellogg's® has partnered with Academy Award-nominated actress Quvenzhané Wallis, from Annie, and professional basketball player Jimmy Butler of the Chicago Bulls to illuminate the issue of children struggling with hunger during National Breakfast Week, which began today.

This year's breakfast program is part of the company's Breakfasts for Better Days® commitment to provide 1 billion servings of cereal and snacks – more than half of which are breakfast – to children and families in need around the world by the end of 2016. Kellogg's is taking a step towards that goal by providing up to one million breakfasts in 2015 for every specially marked box of Kellogg's cereal sold². Kellogg's is also teaming up with Action for Healthy Kids (AFHK) for the fifth consecutive year to make sure more children get breakfasts in school.

Jimmy Butler
Butler, an NBA All-Star who plays for the Chicago Bulls, knows firsthand what it's like to face adversity and understands the importance of starting his day with breakfast. Through hard work and determination along with the much needed support of his family and community, he has been able to achieve his basketball dream. With a personal connection to this issue, Butler is now teaming with Kellogg's to raise awareness of this problem and help ensure that more kids have an opportunity to reach their full potential.

"I'm proud to be partnering with Kellogg's to raise awareness about childhood hunger," said Butler. "Kids should have the tools to help them reach their potential – and it all starts with a good breakfast."

Butler will host a school breakfast event at a Chicago public high school on Wednesday, March 4, to meet with students and emphasize the importance of that first morning meal. After breakfast, students will put their energy into action with a basketball free throw shootout culminating in a monetary donation made to the school by Jimmy Butler and Kellogg's.

Quvenzhané Wallis
Eleven-year-old Wallis, a Louisiana native and Academy-award nominated actress, is known for playing roles of kids living in less than ideal circumstances. Her breakthrough performance as Hushpuppy in Beasts of the Southern Wild and recent role of Annie have inspired the young star to take action in helping other kids and fighting back against childhood hunger, a challenge faced by millions of American school children. Quvenzhané's mother, Qulyndreia, a former school teacher herself, knows firsthand how hunger can impact their ability to reach their full potential. Which is why both have joined Kellogg's in efforts to give breakfast to kids in need.

"I can't imagine starting my school day with an empty stomach. Knowing that kids my age are struggling with this makes me want to help," said Wallis. "Together with Kellogg's, I want to help spread the word so other kids and families can help make a difference."

Action for Healthy Kids
Through AFHK's School Grants for Healthy Kids program and Kellogg's, they're working to help provide one million breakfasts during the 2015-2016 school year to kids across the country who otherwise might not get that first meal of the day by helping schools create or improve existing breakfast programs.²

Over the past four years, grants funded by Kellogg's, and awarded to schools by Action for Healthy Kids have provided more than 420 schools in 40 states support to increase participation in their school breakfast programs. To apply for grants, visit http://www.actionforhealthykids.org/tools-for-schools/apply-for-grants.

Find out more about how you can help combat child hunger by visiting http://www.kelloggs.com/give.

About Kellogg Company
At Kellogg Company (NYSE: K), we are driven to enrich and delight the world through foods and brands that matter. With 2014 sales of $14.6 billion and more than 1,600 foods, Kellogg is the world's leading cereal company; second largest producer of cookies, crackers and savory snacks; and a leading North American frozen foods company. Our brands – Kellogg's®, Keebler®, Special K®, Pringles®, Kellogg's Frosted Flakes®, Pop-Tarts®, Kellogg's Corn Flakes®, Rice Krispies®, Cheez-It®, Eggo®, Mini-Wheats® and more – nourish families so they can flourish and thrive. Through our Breakfasts for Better Days® initiative, we're providing 1 billion servings of cereal and snacks – more than half of which are breakfasts – to children and families in need around the world by the end of 2016. To learn more, visit www.kelloggcompany.com or follow us on Twitter @KelloggCompany, YouTube and on Social K.

About Jimmy Butler
Jimmy Butler is a guard/forward with the Chicago Bulls.  This four year NBA player and  All-Star has established himself as a superstar on the court, averaging almost 40 minutes and 20.4 points per game.  Halfway through the 2014-2015 season, Jimmy has already captured Player of the Week Awards and the Player of the Month Award for November 2014.  

Off the court, Jimmy volunteers his time to troubled youth and underserved families in both Chicago and in his hometown of Tomball, Texas.  Butler played college basketball at Marquette University and was selected 30^th overall by the Chicago Bulls in the 2011 NBA Draft.

For more information about Jimmy Butler, please check out @jimmybutler on twitter.

About Quvenzhané Wallis
Quvenzhané Wallis first received attention for her inspiring command of the screen for her breakout role in 2012's Beasts Of The Southern Wild.  Quvenzhané's portrayal of Hushpuppy was hailed by critics as a career-defining performance and one of the best by a young actor in history. She became the youngest actress to ever receive an Academy Award nomination when she was nominated for Best Actress at the 2013 Oscars, all while at the age of nine.  Quvenzhané went on to win a number of impressive awards, including the African American Film Critics Association for Breakthrough Artist Award (2013), Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Young Performer (2013), Hollywood Film Festival New Hollywood Award (2013), the Women Film Critics for Best Youth Performance (2013), and the Satellite Special Achievement Award for Outstanding New Talent (2012), amongst others. She most recently starred in Sony Picture's 2014 retelling of Annie, of which Quvenzhané's portrayal of the title character earned her both a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress as well as a Critics Choice Award nomination. Quvenzhané will next be seen in the upcoming adaptation of Kahlil Gibran's The Prophet, and Fathers and Daughters alongside Russell Crowe

About Action for Healthy Kids
Action for Healthy Kids is the nation's leading nonprofit and volunteer network fighting childhood obesity and undernourishment by helping schools become healthier places where kids learn to eat right, be active every day, and develop the lifelong habits necessary to promote health and academic success. Action for Healthy Kids reaches nearly 12.9 million students in 29,000 schools with the help of more than 85,000 volunteers and champions. Learn more at www.ActionforHealthyKids.org, on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/act4healthykids), and on Twitter (https://twitter.com/Act4HlthyKids).

¹ Children's Food Security and Intakes from School Meals, Final Report; Mathematica Policy Research/USDA-Economic Research Service, May 2010.

² For every specially marked box sold between March 1, 2015 and March 15, 2015, Kellogg will donate $.35, up to $350,000 to Action for Healthy Kids to help increase participation in new or expanded school breakfast programs resulting in a projected 1 million additional breakfasts served if the maximum contribution is reached.

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