New programme to combat child obesity will be largest in NZ

17 August, 2016

A new programme to combat child obesity will be largest in NZ

2016 Warehouse Group Gala Dinner to support the Empower programme

A new programme to help fight child obesity in New Zealand has been chosen as the recipient of funding from this year’s The Warehouse Group Gala Dinner, said The Warehouse Group Chief Executive Officer Nick Grayston.

Funds will go to not-for-profit partners the Life Education Trust and Garden to Table who together are creating the Empower programme benefiting 32,000 children in 170 NZ schools over a two year period.

Editor-in-Chief of Healthy Food Guide and Garden to Table ambassador, Niki Bezzant welcomes the programme and hopes it will make a difference to the worrying statistics of New Zealand having the third-highest rate of obesity in the OECD.

“One in nine children (11%) aged from two to 14 are obese, and one in three New Zealand children are obese or overweight,” said Ms Bezzant.

Nick Grayston said The Warehouse Group Gala Dinner each year raises money for community partners who take an innovative approach to a challenge facing our community.

“The programmes we choose to support at the Dinner make a substantial difference to a large number of people and meet a need not being met elsewhere,” said Mr Grayston.

Last year’s Gala Dinner raised $725,000 to launch the Kiwi Next Generation programme, created by The Salvation Army and Variety – the Children’s Charity, to support more than 700 young people not in employment, education or training to move into their chosen education or employment. The programme launched in May this year.

This year’s Gala Dinner will take place at Vector Arena on Friday, August 19, 2016.

Life Education Trust Chief Executive John O’Connell said the generous support of The Warehouse Group and its suppliers will enable the creation of the single largest programme to address child obesity in New Zealand schools.

“Through classroom and practical learning we will empower more children to make good choices about their health, especially as it relates to food and healthy eating,” said Mr O’Connell.

Garden to Table Executive Officer Linda Taylor said the vision for the Empower programme is, ‘Empowering children with knowledge to take action and create lifelong healthy habits’.

“Although the Empower programme has been scoped for an initial two years, it is hoped that, based on results achieved and further funding, it could continue into a third year and beyond with more than 250 schools completing the programme, said Ms Taylor.

The primary objective of the programme is to create a comprehensive and sustainable programme to reduce child obesity in New Zealand, she said.

Specific objectives are:
· Equip children with the knowledge of a balanced diet, meal planning and the understanding of key nutrients

· Teach children to understand where our food comes from by growing, harvesting and cooking fresh vegetables and food

· Ensure children have an understanding about our environment and the importance it plays in our health

· Engage families and the local community

· Demonstrate the benefits of early intervention through monitoring and reporting of participant outcomes.

Mr Grayston said the Gala Dinner is an important event every year in the group’s partnership with the community, and the company was grateful for the support of its suppliers and business partners who make possible this significant investment in community development.

In addition to raising funds to support community development, the Gala Dinner presents the company’s Supplier Awards, and will acknowledge The Warehouse’s Community Hero for 2016.

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