Whole Foods Donates Salad Bars To NYC Schools

The supermarket chain Whole Foods celebrated the opening of a new store Thursday by announcing that it is donating salad bars to 57 New York City schools.The salad bars, valued at $300,000, are part of a citywide initiative to put salad bars in all public schools by 2015. There are more than 1,000 salad bars now.

NEW YORK (AP) β€” The supermarket chain Whole Foods celebrated the opening of a new store Thursday by announcing that it is donating salad bars to 57 New York City schools.

The salad bars, valued at $300,000, are part of a citywide initiative to put salad bars in all public schools by 2015. There are more than 1,000 salad bars now.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg joined Whole Foods officials for the announcement at the new store on Manhattan's East Side. He credited his administration's public health policies with reducing childhood obesity rates over the past five years.

"Giving every student access to healthy fruit and vegetables is the next step in countering the obesity epidemic and getting kids started on a healthy habit for life," Bloomberg said.

Whole Foods Northeast Regional President Christina Minardi said, "We are always committed to serving and supporting the local community not only with good food, but also as a good neighbor."

The store on East 57th Street is the seventh Whole Foods in New York City. It shares a building with the High School of Art and Design and Public School 59.

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