News | August 5, 2005

Back-To-School Planning: Organic Foods Play Larger Role In Lunchbox Fare

Horizon Organic Offers Organic Choices for On-the-Go Kids

Boulder, CO - With the start of school just around the corner, parents are starting to think about giving kids healthier school lunches and after-school snacks. Organic food choices are playing a larger role in lunchboxes now more than ever. Increasingly, organic foods and snacks offer new twists and alternatives that add variety, nutrition and energy to lunches and snacks. This year alone, more than 120 organic snacks are expected to be introduced in the U.S., reports Mintel researchers.

Mindful of parents' concerns about the nutritional value of school lunches and snacks, Horizon Organic has become a leader in offering kid-friendly, organic products that are as nutritious as they are delicious because they are produced without the use of antibiotics, added growth hormones or dangerous pesticides.

"Lifelong eating habits are established during childhood, so it's important that kids learn that healthy foods can taste great. Horizon Organic offers a wide variety of nutritious lunchbox-ready organic foods that kids enjoy," says Julie Burns, registered dietician and author a mom of triplets. "Isn't it great that choosing healthy, delicious food can really make a difference for our children today - and in years to come?"

Burns urges parents to consider the following tips as they incorporate organics into their children's school day:

  • Buy single-serve, reduced fat organic milk products. The packaging allows for easy storage, portion control and portability.
  • Prepare sandwiches for lunch with organic cheese.
  • Incorporate organic fruits and vegetables for a balanced diet.
  • Offer children organic cheese sticks and organic yogurt as snacks.
  • When starting an organic diet, start with the foods that you eat the most.

Horizon Organic Offers Healthy School Lunchbox Fare - 2

Horizon Organic's single-serve milks, smoothies, yogurt tubes and cheese sticks are the perfect snacks for lunchboxes and backpacks.

  • Single-Serve Organic Milks: Offered in flavors that kids love, including chocolate, vanilla, strawberry, and plain--all made with 2 percent reduced fat milk. The suggested retail price is $1.09 per serving. Starting this fall, Horizon Organic chocolate single-serve milk will be available in 18-packs at Sam's Club and BJ's locations nationwide.
  • Organic Smoothies: The first organic smoothies made especially for kids, blending nonfat organic yogurt and real organic fruit juices. They're available in three delicious flavors- Wild Berry Blast, Strawberry Banana Splash and Tropical Fruit Punch - and packaged in convenient four-packs. The fat-free smoothies provide a good source of calcium, 100 percent of daily vitamin C requirements and are enriched with NutraFlora®, a prebiotic that increases calcium absorption and improves overall digestive health. The suggested retail price is $3.99 per four-pack.
  • Yogurt Tubes: Made with Grade A pasteurized reduced fat milk, Horizon Organic Yogurt Tubes come in convenient eight-packs, with flavors like strawberry, blueberry and orange cream. Horizon Organic Yogurt Tubes can be frozen so they are ideal as a cool treat or lunchbox dessert. The suggested retail price is $2.99 per pack.
  • Cheese sticks: Available in both mozzarella and colby varieties, Horizon Organic cheese sticks come in packs of six individually wrapped sticks, convenient for school lunches and snacking. The suggested retail price is $3.89 per pack.

SOURCE: Horizon Organic