CAULIPOWER Donates $1 Million to the American Heart Association
CAULIPOWER, makers of popular better-for-you pizza, announced a $1 million donation over three years to the American Heart Association’s food security and education programs. In the short-term funds will immediately provide more than 100,000 meals to 4,500 high-risk families in Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia and Birmingham for the next two months.
The social and economic impact of COVID-19 has heightened the problem of food insecurity in under-resourced communities. Even before the crisis, in Los Angeles County alone 30 percent of low-income households did not know where their next meal was coming from.1
“We are grateful for CAULIPOWER’s commitment to help bring vital resources to communities that need it most,” said cardiologist John Gordon Harold, MD, board president, American Heart Association Los Angeles Division. “This important collaboration will not only provide urgent relief to families facing hardship during these challenging times, but also, in the long term, inspire kids and their families to grow their own food and eat healthier through Teaching Gardens.”
In Los Angeles, the joint program will provide fresh produce boxes with enough food for a whole family through a partnership with Food Forward, SEE-LA and other local organizations such as Manual Arts High School, Keck Medicine of USC, Adventist Health White Memorial and the Weingart YMCA. The farm-fresh produce is sourced from local farmers, also hit hard by the crisis.
“It’s already a tragedy that thousands of families depend on free school meals, but with schools closed that tragedy is a crisis and more children are at risk,” said Gail Becker, Founder and CEO of CAULIPOWER. “We’re thrilled that CAULIPOWER can help put fresh vegetables on the tables of 4,500 families just when they need it most. Help us help more families by donating: Text CAULI to 41444.”
In the medium-term, CAULIPOWER’s donation will help fund the American Heart Association’s 300,000-strong National Teaching Gardens Network and the creation of 100 new Teaching Gardens. Since its inception, CAULIPOWER has contributed a percentage of sales to the Teaching Gardens. The company is proud to continue their support as the National Sponsor with this new $1 million donation. The program and the gardens give schools and other community-based organizations educational resources to teach children about the benefits of healthy home-grown fruit and vegetables.
“Central to CAULIPOWER’s mission is making healthier foods accessible to all. Through these food deliveries and teaching gardens, we have the opportunity to make a lasting impact on children and their families,” Becker added.