GAITHERSBURG, Md., May 14, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --Lorenzo Laohoo, 13, a seventh-grader from the Keller Independent School District in Texas, won the 2012 edition of Sodexo's Future Chefs: Healthy Breakfast Challenge, a nationwide program that teaches students about good nutrition and encourages them to make healthy choices by creating their own nutritious breakfast recipes. Laohoo won the national challenge when the video for his Saturday Asian Breakfast received the most votes on the program's YouTube page.

Students from 228 Sodexo-served schools across the country submitted more than 2,600 healthy breakfast recipes for the program. Laohoo and four others were selected to participate in the finals and all five students made videos of their award-winning recipes which were posted on http://www.youtube.com/user/SodexoFutureChefs.

Online voting was open for 10 days before Laohoo emerged as the winner. The videos were viewed more than 6,200 times over the 10-day period, bringing these amazing students and their fun, healthy and delicious breakfast recipes to a much broader audience.

"I'm proud to be the 2012 Future Chefs champion and I want to thank everyone who voted for my video," said Lorenzo Laohoo. "I also thank God, my family, and the entire Keller community for supporting me."

The four other students joining Laohoo in the national finals were:

"Congratulations to Lorenzo and the other finalists on a job well done throughout the Sodexo Future Chefs: Healthy Breakfast Challenge," said Steve Dunmore, president of Sodexo Education-Schools. "I continue to be amazed by the students' creativity and commitment to healthy eating, especially since good nutrition is a key contributor to achievement in both school and life."

SodexoFuture Chefs was recently recognized by the National Restaurant Association as the winner of its Innovator of the Year Award in the Menu Development category at the 2012 NRA Show in Chicago.Theprogram was selected for the award because Sodexo features student-developed recipes fromthe challenge inK-12 nutrition programs across the country.

Sodexo, a partner in First Lady Michelle Obama's Let's Move initiative, is committed to take measurable sustainable actions that ensure a brighter future in the areas of health and wellness, environmental stewardship and community development. Sodexo focuses on nutrition, achievement, environment, community and activity to promote student well-being.

Sodexo in North America

Sodexo Inc. (www.sodexoUSA.com), leading Quality of Daily Life Solutions company in the U.S., Canada and Mexico, delivers On-site Service Solutions in Corporate, Education, Health Care, Government and Remote Site segments, and Motivation Solutions such as Esteem Pass. Sodexo Inc., headquartered in Gaithersburg, Md., funds all administrative costs for the Sodexo Foundation (www.SodexoFoundation.org), an independent charitable organization that, since its founding in 1999, has made more than $17 million in grants to end childhood hunger in America. Visit the corporate blog at http://www.sodexoUSA.com/blog.

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Keller, TX Middle-Schooler Combines Creativity and Good Nutrition to Conquer Sodexo's Future Chefs: Healthy Breakfast ...

Hallah Bakari, Jayion Fields and Kennedi Green prepare fruit during the Cook Like a Chef! at SU cooking camp for children at Southern University in Baton Rogue.

Photo for the CDT/Anne Quinn Corr

Nutrition class sets up camp on the Bayou

American Chef: Road Trip camp at Penn State will be authentic this year. I did my homework, and lived in Louisiana for the month of June, delivering a cooking camp program at Southern University in Baton Rouge. Bam! Did I learn a lot!

The camp teaches middle school-aged children basic cooking techniques while introducing the Choose My Plate nutritional guidelines.

Slicing and dicing lots of fruits and vegetables increases familiarity, and making recipes that are healthy and tasty has proved to be a sound defense in the battle against childhood obesity. Studies on the program since 2005 have reinforced the premise.

The chance to take it on the road and see if it could also work in Southern Louisiana, where the obesity rate increased by more than 80 percent in the past 15 years, was compelling.

Glenda Johnson, a nutrition professor at Southern University, was the investigator who arranged the 6-week program that included my separate cooking component.

The campers, from local families in the area, were weighed and measured at the start of the program and again at the conclusion.

After mornings of healthy cooking lessons, campers engaged in vigorous physical activity each afternoon, often outdoors in blistering heat. Various facilitators gave lessons on other aspects of healthy living.

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SOUTHERN COOKIN’: Nutrition class sets up camp on the Bayou

MIAMI BEACH, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

RSP Nutrition, the creators of Sports Performance Nutrition, was recently nominated for New Brand of the Year for 2012 by Bodybuilding.com. Bodybuilding.com is the Internets most-visited bodybuilding and fitness site and largest online retailer of nutritional supplements. Nominees were determined based on 2012 sales volume.

According to Victor Davanzo, RSP Nutritions Managing Director, We are honored to receive this nomination as it is a testament to the quality of our brand, products and team. Every day we strive to add value to the lives of our customers and help them lead healthier, more active lifestyles. Nominations such as this reinforce our efforts and continue to grow our presence on an international level.

The Bodybuilding.com Supplement Awards have set the standard for recognition of the best products and brands in the fitness and supplement industry. Last year, over one million votes from across the world helped decide what products would become instant top-sellers out of the 8,000+ products Bodybuilding.com carries. Being nominated for a Bodybuilding.com Supplement Award is quite an accomplishment! Since the public chooses the final winners, winning this award positions a company to be one of the most trustworthy out there, explains Bodybuilding.com CEO Ryan DeLuca.

Winners will be decided by customer vote via an online voting system running July 13, 2012 to August 31, 2012 on Bodybuilding.com and from a top health and nutrition industry panel. Winners will be announced live on the Olympia Main Stage as part of Joe Weiders Olympia Weekend in Las Vegas, Nevada on September 28-29, 2012. Please cast your vote for RSP Nutrition as New Brand of the Year at: http://www.bodybuilding.com/awards

Like us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/FastFuel Follow us on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/FastFuelOnline

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RSP Nutrition is Nominated for 2012 New Brand of the Year by Bodybuilding.com. Vote for RSP Nutrition Now!

ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Horizon Software International, the innovative leader in K-12 food service technology and online school payments, is launching new system features that will help school districts ensure their menus comply with the new meal patterns and nutrient standard regulations imposed by the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act.

With additional reimbursement money riding on compliance with the new regulations, its critical that school nutrition programs ensure their menus meet the new requirements and that students take the food items needed to qualify for a reimbursable meal, says Amy Huff, SNS, vice president of Marketing at Horizon. Our software now makes it easy for them to do so.

Horizons menu planning and nutrition analysis software will allow child nutrition programs to build menus based on the meal pattern components to ensure that the proper amounts of meats/meat alternates, fruits, vegetable subgroupings, grains, and milk are being offered. With the click of a button, Horizons system will compare the schools planned menus against the USDAs new daily and weekly standards for meal pattern and nutrition to identify any missing components or nutrients that are out of compliance.

The software also allows for a cost-per-plate goal to be identified, and then compares the cost of the planned menus against the cost-perplate goal as the menus are being built.

Offering nutritious meals to students is imperative, and keeping the cost of these meals as low as possible is also important, says Randy Eckels, president of Horizon. Our goal is to help foodservice directors successfully manage their operation while serving the needs of their students.

Horizons POS system will allow cashiers to quickly ring up each meal component to ensure the student is taking the required components, eliminating cashier error in identifying a reimbursable meal. For experienced cashiers, the system provides the flexibility to allow the cashier to identify that a meal is reimbursable by pressing a meal key rather than ringing up each component.

Horizons Menu Planner/Nutrition Analysis and POS systems are integrated with its other tools that help districts increase participation, manage cost, and communicate to parents, such as Healthy Reimbursable Meal Vending , SourceBoard digital signage, MyPaymentsPlus online payment system, Inventory Management, and more.

Horizon is always a step ahead in the industry, says Ed Wilkins, director of Student Nutrition Services at San Francisco Unified School District.The functionality they have provided to us will make it much easier to plan our menus and prove compliance with the new regulations.

The new system features are currently being beta tested in thirteen districts across the country, from a one-site private school to a 700+ school district. The new software will be available to all districts in June.

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New Tools Will Assist School Child Nutrition Programs in Complying with the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act

Lack of good, summer nutrition may be one reason elk are spending more time on private Wallowa Valley and Zumwalt Prairie land and not in the national forest. KATY NESBITT / The Observer

Researchers John and Rachel Cook conduct ground-breaking work

Decreases in elk herd numbers have prompted agencies and biologists alike to look to their habitat for clues.

A series of studies, started in 1995, reveal a new piece to the puzzle: the importance of nutritionto elk health, reproduction and survival.

While working with a large herd of tame elk in the early 90s,La Grande researchers John and Rachel Cook of the National Council for Air and Stream Improvement started questioning the importance of nutrition.

Nutrition is an important mechanism of the animals performance that was understudied at the time we started our research, said John Cook.

Cook said recruitment of calves until adult age classes has declined by about half since the 1950s across the Blue Mountains. With this in mind, the Cooks set out to discover if nutrition is indeed a factor, if so, whats causing the problems, and to come up with solutions.

Elk are one the most studied wildlife species in the western United States, but the Cooks nutrition research was ground-breaking. The fact that elk herds were declining across the Northwest, said Cook, tended to shift the focus away from habitat quality, thermal cover, and roads, to understanding what it is about habitat thatdrives population dynamics and performance.

The Cooks have used both wild and tame elk for nearly two decades to learn about their nutritional needs. What they discovered is that a small difference in nutrition has a big effect on performance.

The tame elk study started with 60 elk, all around the age of 4 or 5 years old. They were divided into three groups to determine the effects of nutrition on reproduction.

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Elk and nutrition

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/tvq5w5/encyclopedia_of_hu) has announced the addition of Elsevier Science and Technology's new report "Encyclopedia of Human Nutrition, Four-Volume Set. Edition No. 2" to their offering.

This Second Edition is a thorough revision and 20% expansion of the 1998 release, reflecting the continuing scientific advances in the field of human nutrition. Now a four-volume set, nearly 300 articles with concise, up-to-date information are complemented by an award-winning indexing system. Included is expanded coverage of epidemiology of diet-related diseases, functional foods, food safety, clinical nutrition and gastrointestinal disorders. Virtually everyone will find the Encyclopedia of Human Nutrition an easy-to-use resource making it an ideal reference choice for both the professional and the non-professional alike.

Also available online via ScienceDirect - featuring extensive browsing, searching, and internal cross-referencing between articles in the work, plus dynamic linking to journal articles and abstract databases, making navigation flexible and easy. For more information, pricing options and availability visit http://www.info.sciencedirect.com.

FEATURES OF SECOND PRINT EDITION

- Now a four-volume set with over 250 articles

- Expanded coverage of epidemiology of diet-related diseases, functional foods, food safety, and gastrointestinal disorders, among other topics

ONLINE FEATURES AND FUNCTIONALITIES

- Browse the whole work by volume, authors or article titles

- Full and extensive subject index can be searched or browsed online, and takes you directly to the indexed paragraph, section, figure or table

Excerpt from:
Research and Markets: Encyclopedia of Human Nutrition, Four-Volume Set. Edition No. 2

Sunday, April 29, 2012

THE Zamboanga City Health Office (CHO) has launched Nutrition on Wheels, an outreach program intended to empower communities through proper nutrition.

The program is another innovation adopted by the CHO headed by Dr. Rodel Agbulos to advance its vision of Un Ciudad sin Enfermedad (A city without sickness).

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Mayor Celso Lobregat, together with Agbulos and his staff of the Nutrition Division, spearheaded the launching of the program on Thursday highlighted by a feeding program for young children at the CHO compound in Pettit Barracks.

They were joined by Councilors Benjamin Guingona III, Rodolfo Lim and Myra Paz Abubakar.

Agbulos said his offices mobile van will be used to visit rural areas to conduct feeding programs and information campaigns on good nutrition for people of all ages.

Agbulos said he program is primarily aimed to eliminate malnutrition in the city.

At least 10 villages have been identified as top 10 in malnutrition problem with the village of Pasobolong as number one in the list.

The Nutrition Division of the CHO will conduct feeding programs, information drives and check on the nutrition problem in each of the citys barangays through the use of the mobile van, Agbulos said.

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Health office launches 'Nutrition on Wheels'

Published 4:34pm Saturday, June 2, 2012

Are nutrition and health related? Is healthy eating important? Of course.

Like a finely-tuned racing car, your body needs the right fuel (food) and regular maintenance (exercise, lifestyle and mental attitude) to achieve its true health potential. Nothing is more important than healthy eating. Put in the wrong fuel or let it go without regular use and theres no way it can deliver its full power and performance. Without healthy eating, your bodys engine will cough, splutter and eventually stall.

The importance of good nutrition to achieve optimal health is unquestionable. The importance of good nutrition is central to maintain good health in a dilapidated environment, fight off disease, correct imbalances in the body and provide energy and enthusiasm for life. Optimum health is linked to the importance of good nutrition.

But, the point is that the importance of good nutrition is linked to ones capability to get the proper nutrients from food.

Nowadays, industrial food marketed in the food chain are filled with additives which affect the quality of food. In order to value the importance of good nutrition, natural supplements like vitamins and minerals have to be added to the diet.

Each year, the average American eats 12 pounds of food additives and a gallon of pesticides, not to mention all the air-born pollutants that are inhaled. Its no wonder our bodies are overworked, overburdened, and no longer able to adequately eliminate all these foreign substances. Diet-related diseases include, but are not limited to, coronary heart disease, hypertension, stroke, diabetes, various cancers and osteoporosis. These diseases take the lives of millions of people each year and cost billions of dollars in health care.

On Wednesday, Tianna Bechly, RD LD, Clinical Dietitian for Mayo Clinic Health System-Austin will be with us at 1 p.m. to discuss the New myPlate Diagram, Healthy Eating Tips, Healthy Snack Ideas, Easy Exercise Ideas, and then finish with a general Q&A session.

To sign up for this informative class please call or stop by the front desk at the senior center everyone is welcome. Call 433-2370 ext. 3.

Monday: Blood pressure, 9 a.m.; cards (Pinochle, Duplicate Bridge), 12:30 p.m.; Exercise with Evie, 1 p.m.; Zumba, 5:30 p.m.; Zumba, 7 p.m.

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Austin's source for local news

Washington, DC, June 19, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Proposed government regulations may threaten the viability of small scale producers and raise the cost of locally produced food, say local food advocates.

In 2010, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) scuttled its plans for a National Animal Identification System (NAIS) following a storm of protests from thousands of farmers and consumers. But just two years later, the agency is pushing through a modified version of the traceability program that still fails to address the concerns about the costs and burdens it will impose.

As proposed by the USDA, the new program would require every chicken that is transported across state lines to be officially identified. Provisions for "group identification" are included but will most likely only apply to large vertically integrated operations, while those who own small numbers of poultry will be required to individually identify their birds.

"Thousands of people buy day-old chicks from out-of-state hatcheries every year and will be subject to new federal regulations," notes Sally Fallon Morell, President of the nutrition education non-profit Weston A. Price Foundation (WAPF), and a champion of local fresh food for its nutritional value. "The USDA has completely failed to calculate the costs the new regulations will impose, in both out-of-pocket expenses and red tape, on small poultry farmers and backyard chicken owners who have a few birds for their own use and enjoyment."

Cattle owners would also be subject to requirements to officially identify cattle that cross state lines. Associated businesses, such as livestock sale barns and veterinarians, would be subject to extensive new recordkeeping requirements as well.

The WAPF joined in a letter sent by over a dozen consumer and farming organizations to the U.S. Office of Management and Budget, objecting to the USDA's failure to properly assess the costs of the program. As noted in the letter, research done at the North Dakota State University indicated that the costs to cattle producers could be more than five times greater per animal than the USDA's estimate and amount to hundreds of millions of dollars per year.

"The agency woefully underestimated the cost to livestock producers, for example, assuming farmers could tag a 1,000 lb cow in just one minute, as if they were handling a case of beans," continued Ms. Fallon Morell.

WAPF promotes consumer access to local foods from farmers committed to food safety, humane animal husbandry and rich soil.

"By adding yet more unnecessary regulation, the proposed animal tracking scheme will mean fewer options and higher food prices for the final consumer," concluded Ms. Fallon Morell. "The burden falls hardest on small producers, those least like to have problems with animal health and safety."

The Weston A. Price Foundation is a 501(c)3 non profit, with 572 local chapters and over 14,000 members, worldwide.

The rest is here:
Nutrition Non-Profit Opposes Costly USDA Animal ID Plan

WASHINGTON Steve Cooksey eats what he calls a cave man diet lots of meat and greens, no bread or pasta. He says it has helped him conquer life-threatening diabetes.

But when he wrote about his experiences and offered advice on his Web site, officials in North Carolina said he was breaking the law by providing nutrition care services without a license.

Charla M. Burill, the executive director of the North Carolina Board of Dietetics/Nutrition, called Mr. Cooksey in January to tell him so. The conversation was by all accounts civil, and Ms. Burill had a state law on her side.

About a week after they talked, Ms. Burill sent Mr. Cooksey pages from his site liberally annotated in red ink. She said that writing a blog on your beliefs was fine. But Mr. Cookseys Dear Abby-style advice column was unlawful. So was a paid life-coaching service.

You are no longer just providing information when you do this, she wrote of the column and the service. You are assessing and counseling, both of which require a license.

Indeed, a North Carolina law says that assessing the nutritional needs of individuals and groups without a license is a crime. Many other states license nutritionists and dietitians, but the North Carolina law seems to be among the stricter ones.

In her markup of Mr. Cookseys site, Ms. Burill underlined examples of unlawful advice, including this one: I do suggest that your friend eat as I do and exercise the best they can.

Mr. Cooksey reluctantly made the requested changes. Then he filed a lawsuit in Federal District Court in Charlotte, N.C., saying his First Amendment rights had been violated.

Cookseys advice, his lawyers wrote, ultimately amounts to recommendations about what to buy at the grocery store more steaks and avocados and less pasta, for example.

The First Amendment simply does not allow North Carolina to criminalize something as commonplace as advice about diet, they added.

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Nutrition Blogger Fights North Carolina Licensing Rebuke

July 2 marks the official start of this years Nutrition Month celebration guided by the theme Pagkain ng gulay ugaliin, araw-araw itong ihain!. The National Nutrition Council of the Department of Health kicks-off the nationwide celebration with the planting of vegetables by school children of the ConcepcionElementary Schoolin Marikina City.

The children will be joined by Health Secretary and NNC Chair Enrique Ona, Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala, Social Welfare Secretary Dinky Soliman and Education Secretary Armin Luistro together with NNC Executive Director and concurrent Assistant Secretary of Health Maria-Bernardita Flores.

Thousands of school children are expected to plant vegetables in public elementary schools. The Department of Education issued a memorandum encouraging all schools to celebrate Nutrition Month with the simultaneous planting of vegetables as part of its share to promote consumption of vegetables among children as part of a healthy diet.

This years Nutrition Month celebration aims to encourage every Filipino to eat more vegetables, i.e. 3 servings or more per day, to add more vitamins and minerals in the diet as well as prevent non-communicable diseases such as various forms of cancer, cardiovascular disease and diabetes. As vegetables have less calories, adding them to the diet can help people to reduce weight or maintain normal body weight. A serving of vegetable is equal to a cup of raw leafy vegetables or cup of raw or cooked non-leafy vegetables.

The campaign is in response to the finding that the average Filipino eats less and less vegetables per day in the past 30 years. Based on the food consumption surveys of the Food and Nutrition Research Institute, Filipinos eat only about 2 servings of vegetables on average or about 110 grams. The vegetable consumption has been declining since 1978 when Filipinos still ate 145 grams per day. The data is alarming considering that low fruit and vegetable intake is among the top 10 selected risk factors for global mortality based on a World Health Organization Report. The report also showed that 1.7 million deaths are due to low intake of fruits and vegetables.

The Nutrition Month campaign also aims to encourage families, schools and communities to put up vegetable gardens to ensure supply of fresh and nutritious vegetables. The FNRI also reported that only 67.7% of Filipino households have vegetable gardens or fruit trees. Having vegetable gardens can help in reducing malnutrition and hunger especially among poor families.

According to A/Sec. Flores, The NNC encourages everyone to consume three or more servings of vegetables each day. Lets also eat our indigenous vegetables such as malunggay, saluyot, kangkong, kamote tops and ampalaya. Let us also plant vegetables in all possible places. Even if there is no available space in many urban communities, , there are many urban gardening technologies such as container gardening and the use of hydroponics or soil-less gardening that can be used.

A/Sec Flores also added that Young infants starting at 6 months, should be given pureed, mashed and finely cut green leafy and yellow vegetables. This can be added to thick lugaw to make for a nutritious complementary food in addition to breastmilk. The NNC is very concerned that infants 6-11 months old had an intake of only 2 grams of vegetables while 1 year old children had an intake of 8 grams per day on average. For young children, vegetables are important sources of vitamin A and iron which are important nutrients that improve childrens immune system, growth and development.

Other government agencies, non-government organizations, local government units, private sector and civil society are expected to also conduct various activities to help in promoting vegetables consumption.

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Nationwide Planting of Vegetables in Schools Kicks-Off Nutrition Month Celebration

FORT WORTH, Texas, Aug. 18, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --The Dannon Company, Inc. today awarded Cook Children's a Dannon Next Generation Nutrition Grant totaling $30,000 in support of its Nutrition University, a healthy eating and exercise program dedicated to fostering positive lifestyle habits for overweight children. Dannon presented the award during an event in conjunction with the Tax Free Weekend Back to School Expo at North East Mall.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120818/NY59501-a )

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120818/NY59501-b )

Taught by Cook Children's registered dietitians, Nutrition University includes nutrition presentations, cooking demonstrations and healthy family dinner nights and encourages yogurt as part of a balanced diet. This year the program will directly serve 600 children and their parents. As part of the award, the Dannon Next Generation Nutrition Grant will provide scholarships for 100 children who might not otherwise be able to participate in the program.

"Programs like Nutrition University provide an opportunity for youth to learn important nutritional information that will help them build on a healthy future," said Gayle Binney, Dannon's corporate responsibility manager. "For 70 years, Dannon has created great-tasting yogurt that also provides essential nutrients like calcium, protein, and potassium. We couldn't be prouder to partner with a program like Cook Children's and to offer scholarship funding for this program to low-income families."

Nutrition University is working to combat childhood obesity and promote the consumption of foods that are lacking in children's diets, like low-fat dairy. According to the Center for Disease Control's 2007 Youth Risk Behavior Survey, sixteen percent of Texas youth are overweight and another 16% are obeseputting this group at significantly greater risk of developing heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure and a range of other illnesses. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, consumption of dairy products such as yogurt is linked to a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease and type-2 diabetes, lower blood pressure and improved bone health.

Cook Children's Health Care System President and CEO Rick Merrill said, "Our relationship with Dannon is significant because it will aid our efforts to improve the health of children through these nutrition programs. We are grateful for their financial support and are so pleased that their employees will join with us throughout the year to promote good health."

"Childhood obesity is a life-threatening condition that deserves our undivided attention in this country and in the state of Texas," said Fort Worth Mayor Betsy Price. "I'm excited to be here supporting Dannon and Cook Children's for the fantastic work they are doing to keep our families healthy."

Dannon established the Dannon Next Generation Nutrition Grant to promote childhood nutrition education in each of the four communities where a Dannon facility is located. As part of the program, Dannon contributes $30,000 to one non-profit organization in each of the following communities ($120,000 in total) Auglaize, Mercer, Darke, or Shelby County, Ohio; Salt Lake County, Utah; Tarrant County, Texas; and Westchester County, New York, for programs that nurture healthy eating habits among children. Over the last seven years, programs funded through the Dannon Next Generation Nutrition Grant have reached more than 2,000 children in Tarrant County.

Today's grant ceremony, held at North East Mall, was attended by Fort Worth Mayor Betsy Price, Fort Worth Council Member Frank Moss, Tarrant County Director of Public Health Lou Brewer, Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce President & CEO Bill Thornton and Fort Worth ISD Director of Health and Physical Education Georgi Roberts. Also in attendance were Cook Children's Medical Director of Clinical Research Dr. James Marshall and Grants Administrator Johnell Kelley; Dannon Corporate Responsibility Manager Gayle Binney; and Dannon's Fort Worth Plant Director Pere Costa Torrent.

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The Dannon Company Awards Cook Children's The 2012 Dannon Next Generation Nutrition® Grant

MINSTER, Ohio, Sept.1, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --The Dannon Company, Inc. today awarded the Minster Athletic Boosters a Dannon Next Generation Nutrition Grant totaling $30,000 in support of the Minster Memorial Field improvement project, Honoring the Past While Building for the Future. Dannon presented Minster Athletic Boosters with the award during a ceremony that preceded Minster High School's first 2012-2013 home varsity football game.

(Photo:http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120901/NY66803)

Honoring the Past While Building for the Future will provide Minster High School students and the broader town of Minster with a fully renovated athletic complex, new track, field space and additional revamped physical facilities. The award builds upon existing nutrition and fitness programs that began at Minster Local Schools through a partnership with the Auglaize/Mercer County YMCAa partnership that, in 2006, was awarded the very first Dannon Next Generation Nutrition Grant in Ohio.

"With this grant, Dannon is helping provide all of Minster's residents with an essential means of reaching their healthy lifestyle and fitness goals," said Bruce Thobe, president of Minster Athletic Boosters. "We're honored to have Dannon as our partner in our efforts to promote active lifestyles for all of Minster's residents."

"The Dannon Company is happy to support the Boosters' efforts to provide a safe fitness facility for all of Minster's residents," said Gayle Binney, Dannon's corporate responsibility manager. "For the last 70 years, Dannon has created great-tasting yogurt that provides essential daily nutrients like calcium, protein and potassium while also promoting healthy lifestyles and initiatives that blend nutrition with fitness. We encourage people to eat one yogurt every day as part of their three recommended servings of low-fat dairy every day."

Dannon established the Dannon Next Generation Nutrition Grant to promote childhood nutrition education in each of the four communities where a Dannon facility is located. As part of the program, Dannon contributes $30,000 to one non-profit organization in each of the following communities ($120,000 in total) Auglaize, Mercer, Darke, or Shelby County, Ohio; Salt Lake County, Utah; Tarrant County, Texas; and Westchester County, New York, for programs that nurture healthy eating habits among children. Over the last seven years, programs funded through the Dannon Next Generation Nutrition Grant have reached more than 17,000 children in Ohio.

Today's grant ceremony, held just prior to Minster High School's first varsity football home game, was attended by Ohio State Representative John Adams, Auglaize County Commissioner John Bergman, Auglaize County Commissioner Don Regula, Minster Athletic Boosters President Bruce Thobe; Dannon Corporate Responsibility Manager Gayle Binney; and Dannon's Minster, Ohio Senior Plant Director Doug Roy.

About the Minster Athletic Booster ClubThe Minster Athletic Booster Club has been in service for more than 30 years, and is dedicated to providing support for Minster's student athletes and financial backing to improve athletic facilities and equipment for all sports teams in the school district and community. The Minster Athletic Booster Club serves all seventh through twelfth graders (455 students) in the Minster school district, and has to date been responsible for the construction of a full athletic complex, latex track, strength facility, football stadium, baseball field and more. The Minster Athletic Booster Club help the children of Minster, Ohio understand that good nutrition and physical activity go hand-in-hand in creating a healthy lifestyle.

About Honoring the Past while Building for the FutureThe Minster Athletic Booster Club's Minster Memorial Field improvement project, Honoring the Past While Building for the Future, is a program designed to assist the youth of Minster Local Schools in their efforts to maintain personal fitness and healthy living. The program provides the local community with a fully renovated athletic complex, set to open in the fall of 2012. This award builds upon existing nutrition and fitness programs initiated at Minster Local Schools when they partnered with the Auglaize/Mercer County YMCA to receive the first Dannon Next Generation Nutrition Grant awarded in Ohio in 2006. Today, the Minster Local Schools include healthy meal programs, nutrition label reading, taste tests, and more during the school year to ensure that Minster students know how to build a strong body by eating healthy foods and staying active.

About The Dannon Company, Inc.Celebrating its 70th anniversary in 2012 and headquartered in White Plains, New York, Dannon has plants in Minster, OH, Fort Worth, TX, West Jordan, UT, and Portland, OR. Dannon makes more than 200 different flavors, styles and sizes of cultured refrigerated and frozen dairy products to serve its retail and foodservice customers. In its pursuit to bring health through food to as many people as possible, Dannon is committed to Americans enjoying yogurt every day as one of the three recommended daily servings of dairy.

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The Dannon Company Awards Minster Athletic Boosters The 2012 Dannon Next Generation Nutrition® Grant

EMERYVILLE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

The ongoing effort to improve nutrition and access to good-for-you food and beverage choices for kids in schools just got a healthy boost. Jamba Juice Company (JMBA), with nutrition guidance from National Dairy Council, today announced a new fruit and dairy beverage for K-12 schools. The healthy smoothie, naturally sweetened with fruit and fruit juice, combines the nutrient-rich benefits of fat-free milk with real fruit. The beverage will be unveiled this week at the School Nutrition Association conference in Denver.

School nutrition professionals, the USDA and parent/teacher groups have been working to improve the nutrition in school meals, but also have wrestled with cost considerations and finding options kids will actually consume. This is an important step in the right direction, said Kathleen Zelman, MPH, RD, LD, a nutrition and food, author and member of the Jamba Healthy Living Council. This project moves us closer towards the goal of providing schools with nutritious food and beverage solutions at a reasonable cost per-serving.

Kids should love the natural sweetness of this healthy smoothie, continued Zelman. Its made with nutrient-rich real fruit and fat-free milk that not only tastes great, but also helps address the recommendations of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans and can be offered as an a la carte item at school meal.

Jamba is entering the second year of its JambaGO initiative, a program aimed at bringing better nutrition to kids with full fruit and vegetable servings in smoothie beverages. We believe the program needed a dairy component to reach its full potential as a relevant healthy option in school foodservice programs, said Julie Washington, chief brand officer, Jamba Juice Company. Jamba reached out to National Dairy Council and Dairy Research Institute, founded by Americas dairy farmers, for help with dairy nutrition expertise and in formulating a new dairy and fruit drink. They responded with a dedicated team of nutrition and product development experts. JambaGO smoothies are being served in about 100 schools around the nation and the company expects that number to grow to between 400-500 installations by year end.

According to the USDA Dietary Guidelines, sodas, energy and sports drinks are a top source of added sugars in the American diet. Public health officials are concerned about the steady rise of empty calories consumed by young people and are seeking ways to curb the intake of excess calories to address obesity and the health of the nation. Dairy farmers and dairy companies want to help students get the benefits of essential nutrients found in products made from fat-free milk, such as calcium, potassium and protein, said Jean Ragalie, RD, president, National Dairy Council. Adding dairy to the fruit-based JambaGO smoothie offerings demonstrates our continued commitment to innovation to develop healthy food and beverage choices that children will enjoy.

Schools continue to be a vital link in providing better nutrition for kids. The current JambaGO program has been a huge success for us, said Ken Llewellyn, food service director and nutrition specialist for the Crane School District, Crane, MO. We like it because were offering kids beverages that deliver the nutrient benefits of real fruit, including vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and fiber. The new option coming with real fruit and fat-free milk will be a great addition. The JambaGO program has helped us boost student involvement in our breakfast program by over 10 percent and as a result we are now experiencing 72 percent participation.

The new fat-free dairy and fruit beverage is available in berry and peach flavors and is expected to be available to schools starting in September 2012.

Made with fat-free milk blended with fruit juices and apple, strawberry, and blueberry fruits, the Berry Fruit Smoothie contains one serving of fruit and one-half serving of fat-free dairy per eight fluid ounces, is fat-free, cholesterol free, low sodium food , and is formulated to be a good source of protein, potassium and phosphorus and an excellent source of calcium and vitamin C.

The Peach Fruit Smoothie is made with fat-free dairy blended with fruit juices and peach fruits. It contains one serving of fruit and one-half serving of fat-free dairy per eight fluid ounces and is fat-free, cholesterol free, and low sodium food. It is formulated to be a good source of protein, potassium, vitamin C, and phosphorous and an excellent source of riboflavin (vitamin B2) and calcium.

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Jamba Juice Unveils New Healthy Beverage for Schools

Estimates have been rising for Mead Johnson Nutrition Company (MJN) after the company delivered its 6th consecutive positive earnings surprise. It is a Zacks #2 Rank (Buy) stock.

Based on consensus estimates, analysts project strong double-digit earnings growth over the next couple years as the company continues to grow in the emerging markets.

On top of this growth, it pays a dividend that yields a solid 1.5%.

Company Description

Mead Johnson manufactures and distributes pediatric nutrition products primarily under its 'Enfa' family of brands. The Enfa brand, including Enfamil infant formula, is a global brand franchise in pediatric nutrition.

The company was founded in 1905 and is headquartered in Glenview, Illinois. It was spun-off from Bristol-Meyers Squibb (BMY) in 2009.

First Quarter Results

Mead Johnson Nutrition delivered strong first quarter results on April 26. Adjusted earnings per share came in at 82 cents, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 78 cents. It was an 8% increase over the same quarter last year.

Net sales rose 9% to $986.6 million, ahead of the consensus of $980.0 million. This was driven by a 5% increase in volume and a 4% increase in prices. Growth was particularly strong in the Asia/Latin America segment, which offset weakness in the North America/Europe segment.

The gross margin did decline 230 basis points year-over-year. But operating income was up 12% over the same period to $222.6 million.

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Mead Johnson Nutrition Company (MJN): Zacks Rank Buy

Written by Alyssa Morlacci Monday, 03 September 2012 18:24

With nutrition facts now available for Dining Services daily menus a health initiative thats new this semester its easier than ever for campus diners to choose which food items to stock up on and which to leave behind.

Before classes began, Kent State executive chefs compiled nutrition facts for the menus that change daily at Eastway Cafe and Kent Market, and the facts are listed at those locations, said Dining Services director Richard Roldan. Nutrition facts for more locations and items that are served every day are available on the Dining Services website.

We talk about nutrition and people wanting to understand what they eat, Roldan said. So for us it was important that everything was out there and the information was available.

On average, students gain three to 10 pounds during their first two years of college, and most students gain that weight during their first semester, said nutrition outreach coordinator Tanya Falcone.

There is a misconception that eating healthy on campus is impossible, she said, but with the facts, students have more choices than they might realize.

1. Keep meals at a maximum of 500 calories and 15 grams of fat. This is based on the 2,000 calorie diet that plans for three meals and two smaller snacks.

2. Split meals that have larger amounts of calories and grams of fat with a friend or eat half and save the rest for later.

3. Look for items that are grilled instead of fried.

4. Eat healthy foods during a craving. For example, instead of eating three pieces of pizza, have one piece and a salad.

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Dining services adds nutrition facts to daily menu

LOS ANGELES, July 17, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- As the U.S. celebrates National Ice Cream month, a delicious new brand is taking center stage. Finally, complete and balanced nutrition in a palatable form ice cream! Who doesn't love ice cream? One of the most beloved foods of all ages, Thrive's ice cream format brings back the fun in getting complete nutrition and best of all it is made in the USA.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120717/LA41226LOGO)

Pharmacist developed, Thrive Frozen Nutrition has as much protein as an egg, as much calcium as a cup of milk, and as much potassium as a banana. Each cup is packed with 250 calories, 9g protein (18% dv), 3g fiber (12% dv), 520mg potassium (15% dv), 4 live strains of beneficial probiotics, and 24 vitamins & minerals. Thrive has all the nutrition of Ensure but with added probiotics, which are essential for a healthy gut and immune system, and the delicious taste and appeal of ice cream.

Many people, including children, adolescents, teenagers, adults, and seniors, do not get the right amounts of daily nutritional values which their bodies need. The majority of nutritional supplements available to consumers today do not deliver nutritional value AND great taste. Thrive solves the taste issues that come with standard liquid nutrition boosters: heavy metallic taste & textures, tongue coating, burping, aftertaste, swallowing & flavor fatigue issues.

Thrive Frozen Nutrition has been developed to provide consumers from Kids to Seniors with the right amount of nutrition in a great tasting, convenient, portion controlled product. Whether chronic disease, functional impairment, apathy, inappropriate weight loss, finicky taste buds or just on-the-go, Thrive provides a yummy boost in nutritional intake for all ages. Thrive offers a Premium Ice Cream Taste, Packed with the Nutrition You Need!

After years of research and development, THRIVE is now available in 4 delicious flavors that will not only delight your taste buds, but also nourish your body, allowing you to THRIVE as never before: Homemade Vanilla, Milk Chocolate, Chocolate Fudge, and Strawberry. To learn more about Thrive Frozen Nutrition, visit http://www.thrive4nutrition.com.

About ThriveThe THRIVE Frozen Nutrition concept began almost a decade ago, with the idea of providing an ice cream like product that would "pack" nutrition into a great tasting form. Ice cream and dairy products are a natural carrier of great tasting nutrition such as proteins, calcium, vitamins and minerals. At the same time, ice cream is a favorite food of most Americans. Because of its unique nutritional offerings and broad appeal, ice cream like products are a natural fit for added nutrition lacking in the diets of many consumers today. This concept grew and was intentionally developed over the last several years to not only taste good, but also to provide a source of complete and balanced nutrition for those individuals needing a calorie dense food. Pharmacist developed, Thrive Frozen Nutrition has as much protein as an egg, as much calcium as a cup of milk, and as much potassium as a banana. Each cup is packed with 250 calories, 9g protein (18% dv), 3g fiber (12% dv), 520mg potassium (15% dv), 4 live strains of essential probiotics, and 24 vitamins & minerals. (www.thrive4nutrition.com)

Contact: Rachel Krupa, Krupa Consulting rachel@krupaconsulting.com /323-448-0466

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Be Good To Your Body During National Ice Cream Month! THRIVE® Delivers Delicious Taste & Superior Nutrition

September 04, 2012 18:08 PM

Parents Failing To Make Informed Decision About Right Nutrition For Children

By Wan Shahara Ahmad Ghazali

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 4 (Bernama) -- A child needs proper nutrition for a healthy and adequate development as well as strong physical growth.

A child's normal development and physical growth are crucial, particularly during infancy and up to the time he or she is around seven years old.

Hence, healthy nutrition is vital for a growing child and parents should ensure that they play an instrumental role in this aspect.

A recent study indicates that in the bid to ensure that their child gets all the essential nutrients, young mothers resort to using formula milk or growing up milk (GUM) for meeting the nutritional needs of their infants.

STUDY INDICATORS

The Nutrition Society of Malaysia (NSM), in collaboration with Abbott Nutrition, carried out a recent study, which included 300 mothers who have children below three years of age.

The study shows that several factors influence a young mothers' choice of GUM.

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Parents Failing To Make Informed Decision About Right Nutrition For Children

It takes money to make money. Most investors know that, but with business media so focused on the "how much," very few investors bother to ask, "How fast?"

When judging a company's prospects, how quickly it turns cash outflows into cash inflows can be just as important as how much profit it's booking in the accounting fantasy world we call "earnings." This is one of the first metrics I check when I'm hunting for the market's best stocks. Today, we'll see how it applies to Schiff Nutrition International (NYSE: SHF) .

Let's break this downIn this series, we measure how swiftly a company turns cash into goods or services and back into cash. We'll use a quick, relatively foolproof tool known as the cash conversion cycle, or CCC for short.

Why does the CCC matter? The less time it takes a firm to convert outgoing cash into incoming cash, the more powerful and flexible its profit engine is. The less money tied up in inventory and accounts receivable, the more available to grow the company, pay investors, or both.

To calculate the cash conversion cycle, add days inventory outstanding to days sales outstanding, then subtract days payable outstanding. Like golf, the lower your score here, the better. The CCC figure for Schiff Nutrition International for the trailing 12 months is 91.4.

For younger, fast-growth companies, the CCC can give you valuable insight into the sustainability of that growth. A company that's taking longer to make cash may need to tap financing to keep its momentum. For older, mature companies, the CCC can tell you how well the company is managed. Firms that begin to lose control of the CCC may be losing their clout with their suppliers (who might be demanding stricter payment terms) and customers (who might be demanding more generous terms). This can sometimes be an important signal of future distress -- one most investors are likely to miss.

In this series, I'm most interested in comparing a company's CCC to its prior performance. Here's where I believe all investors need to become trend-watchers. Sure, there may be legitimate reasons for an increase in the CCC, but all things being equal, I want to see this number stay steady or move downward over time.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Dollar amounts in millions. FY = fiscal year. TTM = trailing 12 months.

Because of the seasonality in some businesses, the CCC for the TTM period may not be strictly comparable to the fiscal-year periods shown in the chart. Even the steadiest-looking businesses on an annual basis will experience some quarterly fluctuations in the CCC. To get an understanding of the usual ebb and flow at Schiff Nutrition International, consult the quarterly-period chart below.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Dollar amounts in millions. FQ = fiscal quarter.

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The Unappreciated Awesomeness at Schiff Nutrition International

Many people turn to counting calories when they want to lose weight. But how many of us really know what theyre reading when they scroll through a nutrition label? Here are a few things you should know before tossing any item into your grocery cart.

Serving size is the first line of the nutrition label and the single most important thing to understand. A product that is being marketed as a low calorie snack is only talking about one serving. So if you are eating the whole box, rest assured you are getting more calories than you bargained for.

Frequently, when buying a bag of chips or a drink many consumers think, this looks like one serving. But cute, individually wrapped items can be deceiving. Many snack-sized items often have 2.5 servings. That means that you can take the calories per serving, lets say they are 150, and multiply them by the amount of servings. Eat that cute, individual bag of personal chips and voila, those personal chips just gave your body 375 calories. Doesnt sound like such a healthy snack anymore, does it? Before you pick up an item that you plan on devouring solo, make sure that its just meant just for one.

The same advice applies when considering what bread to buy in the grocery store. When you look at the nutrition label, youll see that most brands consider just one slice of bread to be one serving. But its not easy to make a sandwich with just one slice! Look for bread that offers two slices for less than 150 calories with a good helping of fiber (more on that later).

Fat Matters

Immediately under calories on the nutrition label youll find that foods sometimes offer calories from fat. Generally, you should try to keep fat in your food at an absolute minimum unless the product contains healthy fats from nuts, grains, seeds or avocado. And before you even go there, let me I assure you, Oreos and Doritos do not.

Most people know by now that not all fats are created equal. Companies in the US are now required to list trans fat since they have been directly linked to clogged arteries (which can lead to heart attacks and strokes). In general, make sure you see a big fat zero next to the words trans fat on the nutrition label. Polyunsaturated fats are the healthy fats, while saturated fats should be consumed in limited quantities. The combination of saturated fat and cholesterol is actually what leads to higher levels of cholesterol in the blood. So its not just cholesterol (which is the next item on the label) that you should be looking at.

Watch Out for Sodium

Sodium is another hot ticket item since it is essential for proper cell function, but overwhelmingly, Americans are consuming way too much of this mineral since it is over-used as a preservative for packaged products. This is where knowing how much is okay is important. The RDA suggests that healthy individuals under the age of 51 limit sodium intake to 2,300 mg per day. Check out the label of your favorite frozen meal, most have close to 1,000 mg, while some even surpass 2,000 mg -- and thats just for one meal.

Carbs Are NOT the Enemy

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How to Read Nutrition Labels