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Pass the Love Meal Kits bring Comfort and Stability to Families across the U.S.

by: Jeff Mills, founder and CEO of Genuine Foods

April 12, 2021

Headshot of Jeff Mills At Genuine Foods, we believe real, genuine, culturally relevant food can transform the lives of individuals, families, and communities. The global COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated food insecurity, with estimates that 54 million people in the country are food insecure, including 18 million children. A number of the impacted families and children are part of marginalized communities, many of which are communities of color, who are experiencing the hardships of the COVID-19 crisis disproportionately. To put it simply: nourishing and delicious meals have never been more important.

When we were approached by Partnership for a Healthier America (PHA) to support the Pass the Love w/ Waffles + Mochi campaign in collaboration with their Honorary Chair former First Lady Michelle Obama, we were honored to join them in inspiring families around the country to explore the joy of cooking affordable, nutrition-forward, and fun at-home meals. The Pass the Love campaign is perfectly aligned with our purpose. To ensure that every child – every person – has access to high-quality meals that taste good and can fuel them throughout the day and comfort them in stressful times, like the current pandemic.

Pass the Love Meal Kit Rendering In our role, Genuine Foods will work with PHA on the distribution of Pass the Love meal kits, inspired by Waffles + Mochi, in communities around the country. We’ve developed delicious and easy-to-make recipes for each meal kit, to engage children and families in the cooking process, and provide families with recipes that can be affordably replicated. Importantly, we’ve sourced high-quality ingredients such as whole-wheat pasta, brown rice, red lentils, and fresh produce that highlights each featured ingredient from Waffles + Mochi. Through this collective effort, we aim to provide one million meals to people across the country.

The ability to provide these meals in partnership with such mission-aligned organizations will allow us to play an important role in supporting more families during this uncertain time, and to help remove the barriers of time and access to fostering a lifelong joy of cooking and eating whole foods. We can reach even more families with the generosity of businesses and everyday people who believe in the power of food to transform lives. To get involved, please consider making a donation to the campaign at WafflesAndMochi.org, so we can provide the power of real, genuine food to more of our neighbors and communities.

Jeff Mills is founder & CEO of Genuine Foods, which delivers high-quality, fresh, culturally relevant food service programs to K-12 schools, higher education, seniors, and communities across the country. With an emphasis on fresh ingredients, regional supplier relationships, and meals that celebrate local cultures and communities, Genuine Foods aims to improve the lives and livelihoods of people and communities so that their most vulnerable members can flourish. More information at www.genuinefoods.com.