Transitions Optical Unveils "Feast Your Eyes Enhanced Vision Experience" At Food Network South Beach Wine & Food Festival To Elevate Importance Of Vision In Enjoying Life's Passions

PINELLAS PARK, Fla., Feb. 21, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- To elevate the importance of enhanced vision and kick-off its 2013 campaign – Transitions^® adaptive lenses as the "Official Sponsor of Sightseeing^™" – Transitions Optical, Inc. will unveil the "Feast Your Eyes Enhanced Vision Experience" at the Food Network South Beach Wine & Food Festival presented by FOOD & WINE in Miami, Fla., February 21 - 24. Festival attendees will be invited to visit the event's only elevated structure on the beach to see what they've been missing – in Transitions Optical's effort to raise awareness about the important role of vision in connecting with all of the "sights" around you and enjoying life's everyday moments.

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The "Feast Your Eyes Enhanced Vision Experience" will be located along the beach at the Festival's Whole Foods Market Grand Tasting Village, and will offer several different ways for the more than 30,000 event attendees to see what they've been missing through trials of the Transitions lenses family of products, including Transitions lenses, Transitions^® XTRActive^® lenses and Transitions^® Vantage^™ lenses – all of which enhance visual quality and comfort by adapting to changing light conditions. While on the top deck of the Experience, attendees will also have the opportunity to look through customized viewfinders, to get the best view from above of the Festival and the beach.

As part of the Experience, attendees will also be able to participate in an interactive photo shoot, complete with a decorative set made to look like an over-the-top, whimsical dining experience with food and drink-related props, crew and professional photographer. 

"From picking out fresh herbs, to visually seeing textures and colors of food when cooking, at Transitions Optical we believe vision plays an essential role in enjoying our interests, passions and everyday moments,"  said Dan McLean, senior marketing manager, communications, Transitions Optical. "Participating in the Food Network South Beach Wine & Food Festival is a relevant opportunity to elevate enhanced vision through the passion of food and bringing awareness to the importance of proper eye care and eyewear."

Joining Transitions Optical at the event will be host of the Food Network hit show Restaurant: Impossible and long-time Transitions lenses wearer, celebrity chef Robert Irvine, who will be available for meet and greets at the Enhanced Vision Experience throughout the weekend to discuss how vision plays such an important role in his life, both professionally and personally. Irvine also created two sorbet flavors using eye healthy ingredients – Carrot Lemon Thyme and Spiced Green Apple – which will be served during the Experience.

"To me, enhanced vision means seeing my best by eating eye healthy foods, maintaining an active lifestyle and wearing eyewear that allows me to see clearly and comfortably," said Robert Irvine. "I am thrilled to be at the Food Network South Beach Wine & Food Festival with Transitions Optical, to share my story with others and encourage them to care for their eyes and ask their eye doctor about Transitions lenses."

In addition at the Festival, Transitions Optical will bring the Transitions adaptive lenses tent to the Florida Blue presents Fun and Fit as a Family sponsored by Carnival featuring Kellogg's Kidz Kitchen events at Miami's Jungle Island on February 23 – 24, to educate children and their parents about ways to maintain eye health. Children will have the opportunity to receive free vision screenings, and because one in four children has an undetected vision problem that can interfere with the ability to read and learn, they'll be encouraged to take the "My Eye Promise," pledging to take care of their eyes by getting comprehensive eye exams and wearing proper eyewear.  

Celebrity chef and bestselling author of Sabor! A Passion for Cuban Cuisine, Ana Quincoces, created a signature recipe for the Florida Blue presents Fun and Fit as a Family event using eye healthy ingredients including Brussels sprouts, spinach, apricots, and walnuts, and will spend time at the Transitions lenses tent to share tips on making this recipe at home and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Chef Ana will be joined by a nutritionist from the American Diabetes Association, to further discuss the importance of eating a nutritious diet, and the impact conditions such as diabetes, can have on vision. Robert Irvine, who also created a signature recipe for Florida Blue presents Fun and Fit as a Family – Transitions Trail Mix – will appear at the Transitions lenses tent during the weekend as well.

The founder of mobile literacy initiative Bess the Book Bus, Jenn Frances, who travels nationwide distributing free books to children in need, will also host games, giveaways and read-alouds for children attending Florida Blue presents Fun and Fit as a Family. Transitions Optical partnered with Bess the Book Bus early in the week leading up to the Festival to provide free eyecare services and new eyeglasses fitted with Transitions lenses, as well as brand new books, to underserved children in the Miami area participating in Fit Kids Club, an after-school program that partners with Florida Introduces Physical Activity and Nutrition to Youth (FLIPANY), whose mission is to empower youth and their families through physical activity and nutrition and education programs, particularly in underserved areas of the state.

To learn more about Transitions lenses and where the Enhanced Vision Experience will be next, and for the chance to win exciting prizes, visit www.seemoresights.com.

About Transitions Optical, Inc.

Transitions Optical is a joint venture of PPG Industries, Inc. and Essilor International.  The first to successfully commercialize a plastic photochromic (or adaptive) lens in 1990, today the company is a leading provider of adaptive lenses to optical manufacturers worldwide.  Transitions Optical offers the most advanced adaptive technology in the widest selection of lens designs, materials and brand names – setting a new standard of advanced performance, enhancing visual quality, and providing more visual comfort and eye protection than ever before.

The Transitions family of everyday adaptive eyewear includes Transitions^® lenses, which remain clear indoors and automatically darken outdoors in changing light conditions; Transitions^® XTRActive^® lenses which maintain a comfortable hint of tint indoors and reach superior darkness outdoors; and the revolutionary Transitions^® Vantage™ lenses, the first and only adaptive eyeglass lenses to both darken and polarize outdoors, so that your vision is noticeably crisper with enhanced contrast and sharpness.

All products in the Transitions family of adaptive eyewear block 100 percent of harmful UVA and UVB rays – helping to protect the health and wellness of your eyes – so you can see better in the future as well.

For more information about the company and Transitions lenses, visit http://en-us.transitions.com/ or contact Transitions Optical Customer Service at (800) 848-1506 (United States) or (877) 254-2590 (Canada).

SOURCE Transitions Optical, Inc.