News Releases

Summer Hunger Limiting Childhood Fun
Recent Survey Shows Canadian Parents Struggle to Feed Children during Summer Holidays

Tweetable Highlights:

  • #KelloggCanada is #FeedingBetterDays for the 1 in 3 CDN parents who often struggle to feed their children breakfast: http://bit.ly/1ZLOVje
  • 40% of parents challenged to provide food avoid having kids friends over on summer break says #KelloggCanada survey: http://bit.ly/1ZLOVje
  • #KelloggCanada is addressing childhood hunger this summer w/ a $70,000 donation to @foodbankscanada’s After The Bell Program 

MISSISSAUGA, ON (June 14, 2016) – The summer holidays are supposed to be a time filled with laughter, play, sunshine and making new friends, but for the children who are regularly missing breakfast, summertime happiness may never be realized.

The recent Kellogg’s Breakfasts for Better Days Summer Hunger Survey* (“The Kellogg’s Survey”) polled Canadian parents from low to middle income families and found that one third of parents are challenged to provide breakfast, lunch, dinner or snacks for their kids during the summer holidays.

This time of year is especially difficult for struggling families, as 20 per cent of parents rely on breakfast and other food programs at their child’s school during the school year to fill the meal gap. But after the bell, most programs close for the summer months.

The lack of food is depriving kids of the summer they deserve. In fact, almost half (40 per cent) of parents who struggle to provide food during summer break reported they avoid having their children’s friends over in order to focus on feeding their family. Other important childhood activities like sports and community events are also being missed, with 34 per cent of parents opting out of the fun to pay for food instead.

“When the school year is over, many families turn to food banks for help to fill the gap of breakfast programs available throughout the year,” says Pam Joliffe, Interim Executive Director at Food Banks Canada. “We all know how important it is to start the day off with a nutritious breakfast, but sadly, this summer, thousands of children won’t have the healthy start they need to take on the day. That’s why we’re bringing attention to the issue through our After The Bell Child Hunger Program in partnership with Kellogg Canada.” Originally piloted in 2015, the initiative supplies weekly mini-meal packs to food banks across Canada to deliver to children during the summer months. 

FOOD PROGRAMS ARE FILLING THE MEAL GAP
Accessing programs that replace their children’s school meal opportunities has become a challenging task for many low income parents, so turning to food banks has become critical to filling the meal gap. In fact, close to 918,000 men, women and children will face food insecurity and be challenged to access food during the summer1. And, the picture painted by The 2015 Hunger Count Report by Food Banks Canada – the preeminent annual report on hunger and food bank usage in Canada – isn’t any brighter, revealing that 310,000 Canadian children relied on food banks each month in 2015 and food bank usage continues to grow yearly – up 26 per cent since 20082. 

Summer breakfast programs and food banks have proven to be a valuable resource to parents and children in need. In fact, more than three quarters (81 per cent) of parents agree there should be more food bank support and breakfast programs available during the summer months.

BREAKFAST LEADS TO BETTER DAYS, EVEN AFTER THE BELL
Kellogg Canada, through its Breakfasts for Better Days initiative, is helping make a difference, with a donation of $70,000 to fund Food Banks Canada’s After the Bell Program, which will provide children who are experiencing hunger during the summer months, increased-access to much needed nutritious food.

This donation is in addition to the more than $3 million dollars and 27 million servings of cereal and snacks Kellogg Canada has provided to breakfast clubs and food banks over the past ten years. Moreover, through Kellogg Canada’s partnership with Food Banks Canada and the After the Bell Program, the company will help provide more than 55,000 meals to almost 6,000 kids in need across the country this summer alone.

“Summer break should be one of the best times in a child’s life, but unfortunately for many Canadian children, that’s not the case,” adds Lores Tomé, Director, Communications and Corporate Affairs, Kellogg Canada Inc. “What children learn outside of the classroom is just as important as what they learn inside, and that all begins with a nutritious start to the day. It’s why we are proud to build on our longstanding support of breakfast programs and food banks across the country through our global signature cause, Breakfasts for Better Days.”

Join the conversation and help children have the summer break they deserve by sharing the Summer Hunger infographic or animated infographic using the hashtag #FeedingBetterDays, and learn more about the power of breakfast and Kellogg’s Breakfasts for Better Days initiative by visiting www.kelloggs.ca.

ABOUT KELLOGG CANADA INC.
Driven to enrich and delight the world through foods and brands that matter, Kellogg Canada is the leading producer of ready-to-eat cereal in Canada. Every day, our beloved brands nourish families so they can flourish and thrive. These include All-Bran*, Kellogg’s Corn Flakes*, Corn Pops*, Eggo*, Froot Loops*, Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes*, Kashi*, Kellogg's* Two Scoops* Raisin Bran, Mini-Wheats*, Nutri-Grain*, Pop-Tarts*, Pringles*, Rice Krispies*, Special K* and Vector*. Through our Breakfasts for Better Days™ global hunger initiative, we’ve provided more than 1.4 billion servings of cereal and snacks to children and families in need around the world. To learn more about our responsible business leadership, foods that delight and how we strive to make a difference in our communities around the world, visit www.kelloggcompany.com. To learn more about Kellogg Canada’s efforts in these areas, please visit www.kelloggs.ca.

* © 2016, Trademark of Kellogg Company used under licence by Kellogg Canada Inc.

ABOUT FOOD BANKS CANADA
Food Banks Canada supports a unique network of over 3,000 food-related organizations in every province and territory that assists more than 850,000 Canadians each month. Together our network shares over 200 million pounds of essential safe quality food annually, provides social programs that help to foster self-sufficiency, and advocates for policy change that will help create a Canada where no one goes hungry. Visit www.foodbankscanada.ca for more information.

* ABOUT THE 2016 KELLOGG’S BREAKFASTS FOR BETTER DAYS STUDY From May 12 to May 16, 2016, an online survey was conducted among 719 randomly selected Canadian parents from low to middle income families who are Angus Reid Forum panelists. Discrepancies in or between totals are due to rounding. 
1Food Bank Canada’s Every Plate Full: http://everyplatefull.ca/
2Food Banks Canada Hunger Count 2015 Report: https://www.foodbankscanada.ca/Hunger-in-Canada/HungerCount-2015.aspx?lang=en-CA