Fall 2009: Welch's 3rd Annual P.A.C.K. Week Initiative in Support of Fruits & Veggies—More Matters
P.A.C.K. Week is an annual educational program aimed at
encouraging kids to eat more fruits and vegetables while at school. During this week, children who purchase lunch will be encouraged to include a fruit or vegetable of the day in their
cafeteria selection. In addition, parents across the country will
be encouraged to “pack” more fruits and vegetables, in a variety of colors and forms, into their children’s lunch boxes.
P.A.C.K. Week: Pack Assorted Colors for Kids Week is a national healthy-eating initiative aimed at encouraging children to eat more colorful fruits and vegetables.
This public health initiative is a collaboration between Welch's and Produce for Better Health Foundation in celebration of National Fruits & Veggies—More Matters®.
P.A.C.K. Week is a simple five-day program that promotes eating more fruits and vegetables as well as a wider color variety. Visit www.welchs.com/pack to download free program materials.
Last year schools across the country participated in this fun, nutrition-based program, and hundreds of thousands of elementary school children "packed" more colorful fruits and vegetables into their diets.
Nurses said P.A.C.K. Week engaged their students in a dialogue about fruits and vegetables and started the year off with a focus on healthy eating. Some schools even chose to continue this program periodically throughout the year.
P.A.C.K. Week can be declared at any week of your choosing to best fit your school's needs.
Each day of P.A.C.K. Week is assigned a different color to help children focus on broadening their selection of fruits and vegetables. Whether children buy lunch at school or "pack" it from home, they will be encouraged to include fruits and vegetables of the color of the day in their snacks and lunches. Since all forms count - fresh, dried, canned, frozen and 100% juice - it is easy to include more fruits and vegetables each day.
The colors for each day of P.A.C.K. Week are:
Monday - Pack Purple Day
Tuesday - Pack White Day
Wednesday - Pack Red Day
Thursday - Pack Yellow/Orange Day
Friday - Pack Green Day
P.A.C.K. Week kicks off with "Pack Purple Day" since the purple/blue category is the least represented in our diets - only 3% of our current fruit and vegetable intake is from this color category. Yet, the purple/blue category is particularly important as it provides healthful plant nutrients not found in other color categories.
It's easy to participate in P.A.C.K. Week - simply visit www.welchs.com/pack and download the free educational materials, as well as a letter that can be sent home to parents/guardians in advance of P.A.C.K. Week to encourage participation.
Welch's is a member of the Produce for Better Health Foundation and is proud to sponsor this program.
