WALNUT CREEK, Calif., Oct. 29, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Del Monte Foods, Inc. today announced a partnership with GrowingGreat™ to bring hands-on nutrition education to elementary and middle school children, empowering a generation of healthy eaters. This is a natural partnership for Del Monte Foods, Inc. and expands their Growers of Good™ initiative which is focused on nurturing the Earth's goodness today to grow a healthier and more hopeful tomorrow. Other partnerships include their recent collaboration with Kellogg's World Food Day online food drive via Amazon to help local shelters and food banks to get the foods and products that they need.

GrowingGreat is a nonprofit organization based in Los Angeles, California with the mission to empower children to make healthy food choices through hands-on science and garden education. The organization has served over 250,000 children, teens and families since 1999 through their hands-on garden, nutrition and science education programs.

"At GrowingGreat we believe every community should have access to healthy produce and all children should experience the joy of growing fruit and vegetables in their own garden," said Jennifer Jovanovic, Executive Director for GrowingGreat. "Every child deserves the chance to see their full potential, and that starts with the knowledge and excitement around the right foods to power their brains and bodies."

Del Monte Food's sponsorship of GrowingGreat will increase the organization's national reach by an estimated 95,000 children, parents and teachers through the activation of eight science centers, children's museums, zoo and school partnerships in addition to Mount Diablo and Los Angeles Unified School Districts.  Based on annual attendance, the indirect impact would total over 5.6 million museum visitors alone nationwide. Partners include the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University in Philadelphia, Marbles Kids Museum in Raleigh, Saint Louis Science Center, Carnegie Science Center in Pittsburgh, Detroit Zoo, the Discovery Center in Murfreesboro/Nashville, Oregon Museum of Science and Industry in Portland and Discovery Place Kids in Huntersville/Charlotte.

Del Monte Foods has already engaged Mount Diablo Unified School District as the first school district involved in the program which is located nearby their Walnut Creek, California headquarters. In partnership with GrowingGreat, Del Monte Foods will support STEM and nutrition curriculum, through Mount Diablo Unified School District's afterschool CARES program.

CARES will have three pilot sites across two elementary schools and one middle school this year, impacting up to 5,000 students and teachers. This partnership will help CARES to expand their cooking, nutrition, garden, and STEM curriculums while also engaging students in career exploration within the fields of agriculture, the culinary arts, and research development in nutrition. Similar programs will be launched across eight other school districts nationwide throughout the next 12 months.

"As one of the original plant-based food companies, Del Monte Foods believes that all Americans should have access to the fruits and vegetables they need to live a healthy lifestyle. This partnership with GrowingGreat will allow Del Monte Foods to expand this mission to young people across the country, encouraging a generation of passionate, healthy eaters, by bringing hands-on nutrition education to the classroom and beyond," said Bibie Wu, Chief Marketing Officer, Del Monte Foods.

Del Monte Foods has been a leader in providing accessible nutrition through the goodness of fruits and vegetables for over 130 years. The company continues to enhance the wellness of consumers' lives through innovation like Del Monte Veggieful, a new platform of meals and snacks that make the goodness of vegetables unexpectedly delicious.

About Del Monte Foods, Inc.
Del Monte Foods, Inc. is one of the largest producers, distributors and marketers of premium quality, branded food products for the U.S. retail market. Our brands include Del Monte®, Contadina®, College Inn®, and S&W®.

Del Monte Foods has a legacy of innovation and providing accessible nutrition to the American public, making it an iconic brand for over a century. In recent years, Del Monte Foods has been innovating from within, leveraging their history as one of the original plant-based food companies, their size and structure to transform their business and expand their product portfolio.

Del Monte Foods is the U.S. subsidiary of Del Monte Pacific Limited (Bloomberg: DELM SP, DELM PM) and is not affiliated with certain other Del Monte companies around the world, including Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc., Del Monte Canada, or Del Monte Asia Pte. Ltd. For more information on Del Monte Foods, visit www.delmontefoods.com.

About GrowingGreat
GrowingGreat is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization whose mission is to empower children to make healthy food choices through hands-on science and garden education. As a pioneer in school gardens in Los Angeles since 1999, GrowingGreat has reached hundreds of thousands of children and their families with hands-on nutrition, garden, STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) and literacy education. GrowingGreat's 20th anniversary year is a celebration of program expansion from preschool to high school, in Spanish and English, during and after school, and always with the opportunity to enjoy fresh, healthy foods. They are committed to families in cement-covered cities where a school garden may be a child's only experience with living, growing things.

For more information on GrowingGreat visit http://growinggreat.org/

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Laura Cohen
Edelman
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SOURCE Del Monte Foods

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