Brighter Bites, a Houston-based nonprofit providing under-resourced families with fresh produce and nutrition education, received a $1.5 million grant from the Walmart Foundation to expand programming in communities throughout the country.
The grant supports Brighter Bites’ project, “Build a Better Tomorrow for Our Families,” by creating communities of health through increasing access to fresh food and nutrition education equitably across neighborhoods in participating cities. Currently, Brighter Bites’ serves more than 30,000 school children and their families across 148 schools in Houston, Dallas, Austin, the Washington, D.C. metro area, New York City, Salinas, CA, Southwest Florida and Los Angeles.
The $1.5 million grant from the Walmart Foundation will help Brighter Bites expand programming in communities throughout the country.
Brighter Bites will use the granted funds to establish new partnerships with food banks, community partners, additional local funders and school districts through the 2023-2024 school year. These will also be used to hire staff and other resources. By broadening its national scope, Brighter Bites will increase the impact it currently provides among families living in neighborhoods and communities defined as “food deserts.”
Additional investments in technology will be made as well, including an improved data infrastructure that will enhance data collection and maintenance. Brighter Bites will extend teachers and school administrators’ access to digital resources, which will then be applied inside the classroom and at home among families.
Brighter Bites’ goal has always been to impact as many children and families as possible by providing easy access to fruits and vegetables. Each week families, teachers and administrators participating in the Brighter Bites program receive approximately 50 servings of eight to 12 different produce items, along with nutrition education materials.
“Empowering children and families to make healthier food choices is crucial in strengthening the health and well being of communities,” said Eileen Hyde, senior director community resilience, Walmart.org. “Our support of Brighter Bites has helped communities across the U.S. to consume more fresh fruits and vegetables and we’re thrilled with the impact their programs are having.”
“Brighter Bites is grateful to be awarded this grant,” said Rich Dachman, CEO of Brighter Bites. “These funds allow us to provide fresh fruits and vegetables to even more families around the country as we continue expansion to other cities."
Brighter Bites partners with the UTHealth School of Public Health to demonstrate its impact on improving its families’ long-term health and nutrition. A recent statistic from UTHealth researchers reports: "As compared to baseline, at two years follow-up after the program, parents reported significant increases in daily intake of vegetables, and combined fruit and vegetables. As compared to the shopping and consumption habits of families at baseline, by the end of the spring, participating families reported a significant decrease in the amount of added sugars consumed, as well as a significant increase in eating produce-heavy meals together at home.”
For more information:
Jessica Schneider
Brighter Bites
[email protected]
www.brighterbites.org
