Kashi Company 'Stands Up For Real Food' With New Online Resources Promoting Natural Living

LA JOLLA, Calif., April 26, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Furthering its 25-year commitment to real food, Kashi, the premier natural food and lifestyle company, today announced the recent launch of the Kashi Ingredient Decoder™—the latest tool to join the company's continuously expanding and valuable resource portfolio created to support real food enjoyment and education, as well as inspire natural, healthy living.  Designed to help people better understand what they are putting into their bodies, this online decoder outlines some of the more confusing ingredients in simple terms in order to encourage more informed food choices.  With many companies now making efforts to remove ingredients such as highly refined sweeteners from their foods, Kashi is underscoring its long-standing commitment to using ingredients that are as close to nature as possible by introducing a variety of new and expanded resources that help people live their best lives.

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"For more than 25 years, we have been dedicated to creating delicious, real foods that provide a unique eating experience of colors, textures and tastes," says Keegan Sheridan, natural food and lifestyle expert at Kashi.  "We want to remind people that we remain committed to this work by not only continuing to provide great tasting, all natural foods aligned with our 7 whole grain nutrition values, but also by developing new educational tools that help them understand what's behind their food choices and how they can incorporate more natural practices into their everyday lives."

The Kashi Ingredient Decoder, available at www.kashi.com/realfood, joins three additional online resources Kashi has developed to promote natural lifestyle education.  First, a new 7 Whole Grains on a Mission™ platform includes information on Kashi's signature seven grains, including their nutritional and taste properties, as well as a sourcing map that highlights where the whole grains actually come from.  This resource will soon expand to include profiles on specific farmers that supply these grains for Kashi's foods, providing a better sense of how foods get from the farm to the table.  In addition, the company offers Natural Nearby—a community database that enables site visitors to search for local resources that support a healthy, natural lifestyle, including retail stores, health clubs, recreational sites and farmer's markets.  Finally, a robust natural learning library on Kashi's website provides easy access to hundreds of articles, videos and reference tools on a wide range of natural lifestyle topics.

The new Kashi Ingredient Decoder, along with Kashi's other valuable online tools, represent key components of the company's larger "Stand Up for Real Food" initiative, aimed to educate and raise awareness of natural foods and ingredients among a wide variety of audiences, from farmers, to manufacturers, to retailers to the public.  The initiative embodies the principles and food values Kashi has stood behind for more than 25 years, including leading-edge nutrition that respects the synergy offered by nature and the strong link between people and planet health; processing foods minimally and only to the extent needed to offer progressive nutrition that is both enjoyable and safe; and overall real food enjoyment.

"Today, people have a growing desire to become more educated and learn about where their food comes from," continues Sheridan.  "By developing and expanding our online platforms and preparing for a 2011 nationwide natural lifestyle tour, we hope to inspire people to join us in standing up for real food, good health and the power of whole grain nutrition."

To access Kashi's natural food and lifestyle resources, or to get more information on the brand and its offerings, please visit www.kashi.com.

About Kashi Company

Founded in 1984, Kashi dreams of a world where everyone embraces natural health.  As a natural lifestyle pioneer, Kashi is passionate about and committed to improving the health of people and our planet.  By providing great tasting, healthy and innovative foods, Kashi enables people to achieve optimal health and wellness, while also leading them on a path toward embracing a natural lifestyle.  Kashi encourages people to live their best lives through its interactive online community at Kashi.com and Day of Change cross-country tour supporting natural living.  It also educates people through Wellness Hub, educational events that inspire the local Kashi community to embrace natural healthy lifestyle.  To learn more about 25 years of Kashi's mission, sustainable efforts, values and roots, get inspired by the Yearbook on Kashi.com. 

Kashi's products are natural, minimally processed and free of highly refined sugars, artificial additives and preservatives.  Kashi® brands and foods include: GOLEAN® cereals and bars; Kashi® Heart to Heart® cereal, instant oatmeal and whole grain crackers; Kashi® 7 Whole Grain Puffs, Honey Puffs, Nuggets and Flakes cereals; Kashi® Good Friends® cereals; Kashi® Autumn Wheat®, Cinnamon Harvest®, Island Vanilla® and Strawberry Fields® (organic) cereals; Kashi® Honey Sunshine®, Berry Blossoms™ and Golden Goodness™ cereals; Kashi U™ cereal; Cocoa Beach™, Mountain Medley® and Summer Berry™ granola; Kashi® TLC® chewy and crunchy granola bars, fruit & grain bars, soft-baked cereal bars; Kashi® TLC® snack crackers and Kashi® TLC® cookies; Kashi® all natural frozen entrees; Kashi® all natural frozen pizzas; and Kashi® 7 Whole Grain Pilaf. 

Join the Kashi community online at www.kashi.com and on Facebook www.facebook.com/kashi

SOURCE Kashi Company