Nature’s Path Organic Foods Offers First USDA Organic School Compliant Cereal in the United States for National School Breakfast Program
Pioneer in Organic Foods Commits to Making Organic Options More Accessible in Schools to Nourish Kids and the Planet
VANCOUVER, BC (April 29, 2024) – EnviroKidz, the leading kids brand of the Nature’s Path Family of brands, today announced it is offering the nation’s first USDA Organic school compliant cereal as part of the National School Breakfast Program, making delicious, nutrient-rich organic foods more accessible to children. In partnership with Conscious Kitchen and West Contra Costa Unified School District Nutrition Services (WCCUSD), the collaborative program offers participating California schools two gluten free, organic EnviroKidz breakfast cereals as part of students’ morning options. With the goal to educate and empower students to feel their best by providing access to nutritious foods to start their day, Nature’s Path and partners are reinventing school breakfast with nourishing, organic foods that benefit people and the planet.
Close to 30 million students rely on school meals for a significant portion of their daily nutrition, with around 50 percent of their daily calories coming from these meals.1 Nature’s Path and partners are committed to improving school nutrition by making organic food readily available for breakfast.2 Both cereals being served as part of the program – EnviroKidz Choco Chimps and NEW EnviroKidz Monarch Magic – are made with nutrient-dense, whole grains and only six grams of sugar, while also avoiding the use of synthetic fertilizers and toxic pesticides. Not only do these cereals offer people health benefits that can nourish students’ development, but they also prioritize advancing the holistic health of the planet as organic foods can increase soil biodiversity, which is essential for sequestering carbon and helping plants thrive.
“This program has been a labor of love as part of our mission has been to make organic food more accessible to more people,” said Jyoti Stephens, Vice President of Mission & Strategy at Nature’s Path. “With many of us at Nature’s Path being parents ourselves, we wanted to give students a nutritious, organic breakfast that can help set them up for success. We’re excited to introduce our cereals to participating schools and look forward to expanding even further over the coming year.”
To officially kick off the announcement, Nature’s Path, Conscious Kitchen and WCCUSD are hosting a special event for local representatives and decision-makers at Michelle Obama School in Richmond, California on May 2, celebrating the new organic cereal offerings at select schools. The event will include influential speakers, such as organic food advocate, Alice Waters, discussing the importance of organic food access, nutrition, environmental impact, and collective action, alongside a tasting of the new Nature’s Path cereals.
"This launch shows what is possible when a non-profit, business and California school district join forces around a common goal — a true collaborative success for students, food services, faculty, our team and Nature's Path," said Judi Shils, Founder of Conscious Kitchen. "We started Conscious Kitchen to bring fresh, local, organic, nutritious food to kids in schools to benefit their health, our communities and shared planet. Alongside Nature's Path and WCCUSD, we are addressing food education, equity and access while proving that organic is a viable option for school meals that can start with a bowl of organic cereal for breakfast!”
These cereals are packaged in EnviroKidz ECOPACS, which are made with recyclable packaging materials and use up to an average of 66% less packaging by avoiding cardboard. Nature’s Path’s EnviroKidz cereals also help protect wildlife as the company donates a portion of sales to environmental education and conservation projects that support vulnerable and endangered animals, such as the Jane Goodall Institute and XERCES. To date, Nature’s Path has donated more than $4.2 million to EnviroKidz species to support youth environmental education, habitat restoration and species conservation work around the world.
“We are proud to support the launch of the first USDA organic, school compliant, climate smart, cereal starting here in our district and throughout California schools,” said Barbara Jellison, Executive Director, Nutrition Services, West Contra Costa Unified School District. “Our kids helped taste test the cereals and gave valuable feedback to the Nature’s Path team. These next generation leaders are learning what it takes to affect positive change in our school food system.”
To learn more about this program and Nature’s Path, please visit www.naturespath.com. To find your closest retailer or to shop online, please visit www.naturespath.com.
About Nature’s Path Foods
Nature’s Path Organic Foods, is a privately held, family-owned company, producing USDA and Canadian Certified Organic and Non-GMO Project Verified breakfast, baking, and snack foods sold in grocery and natural food stores in over 50 countries around the world. Committed to the triple bottom line— socially responsible, environmentally sustainable and financially viable, Nature’s Path works diligently to support communities and champion the cause of people and planet. Brands include Nature’s Path®, Nature’s Path Flour®, Anita’s Organic Mill®, Love Crunch®, Qi’a®, Que Pasa®, Flax Plus®, EnviroKidz®, and Love Child Organics®. Founded in 1985, Nature’s Path is headquartered in Richmond, British Columbia and employs hundreds of valued team members at its three facilities in Canada and the United States. For more information, visit http://www.naturespath.com or follow on Twitter @NaturesPath and Instagram @NaturesPathOrganic.
About Conscious Kitchen
Conscious Kitchen addresses food equity, education, and access by shifting the paradigm around school food service, while cultivating a local, ecological food system, and building nutrition literacy into meals. Through a collaborative, replicable approach, Conscious Kitchen partners with schools and communities to break the cycle of conventional, packaged, overly processed food, transitioning to meals based on five foundational attributes: fresh, local, organic, seasonal, nutritious.
About West Contra Costa Unified School District Nutrition Services
The WCCUSD Food Services Department is made up of a team of food and nutrition professionals that are dedicated to students' health, wellbeing and ability to learn, supporting learning by promoting healthy habits for lifelong nutrition and fitness.
Hoping Tony Thurmond California Superintendent of Schools as well and USDA Wetern Region Aministrator
