Two local supermarket chains have pledged to ‘Make A Change’ to the lives of local children affected by cancer this Christmas.

EUROSPAR and ViVOXTRA stores across the province have signed up for Northern Ireland Cancer Fund for Children’s (NICFC) Make A Change campaign. Throughout the festive period, they will be asking their customers to donate any spare pounds and pennies to NICFC, a charity which helps children living with cancer, and their families.

The stores, which have been supporting Northern Ireland Cancer Fund for Children (NICFC) for over two years, will be holding special collections between the 9th – 20th December, during Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.

Patrick Doody, Marketing Manager for EUROSPAR and ViVOXTRA announced his delight at being able to support the campaign.  “We’re so proud to support a wonderful local charity like Northern Ireland Cancer Fund for Children,” he said.  “I can’t imagine how difficult the Festive Season must be for families affected by childhood cancer, but by supporting NICFC, we know that our staff and customers are making a positive difference to the lives of these families, at a time when they most need it.

“We’re really looking forward to taking part in the campaign, and I want to extend a thank you to our staff and customers for their hard work and support of NICFC.”

Sorcha Chipperfield, NICFC Corporate Fundraiser, said, “I’d like to say thanks to EUROSPAR and ViVOXTRA for their on-going support, and for taking part in the campaign. By encouraging people to donate their small change, they will make a major change to the lives of children affected by cancer.”

All money raised from the campaign will be used to fund Northern Ireland Cancer Fund for Children’s practical, therapeutic and financial support services for children living with cancer, and their families.

The charity is currently completing building work on Daisy Lodge, a new therapeutic centre in the foothills of the Mourne Mountains, which will open in spring 2014 and provide short-breaks to up to 500 families affected by cancer per year.

If you are a business who would also like to take part in Make A Change, contact Sorcha@nicfc.com. Or to Make A Change yourself, call into any EUROSPAR/ViVOXTRA.

Almost half of Northern Ireland’s working professionals eat the most important meal of the day at their desk according to a survey commissioned by local cereal producer White’s Oats.

An overwhelming 92% of working professionals surveyed confirmed they do eat breakfast which was welcomed by White’s Oats yet, while tea and toast was the most popular breakfast at home, porridge was the preferred choice of more than one in four at work.

‘Lack of time’ was cited as the primary reason for not eating breakfast at home by around one in four respondents. Other reasons given for skipping breakfast included more than half admitting they didn’t like eating too early in the morning. Weight management was cited by 12% as a reason for missing breakfast, despite endless research having shown that eating breakfast does in fact help manage people’s weight, while 8% preferred longer in bed.

White’s Oats partnered with the global initiative The Work Perk to reward 50,000 working professionals across Northern Ireland and Great Britain with delicious samples of its Toat’ly Oaty Instant Porridge and in doing so surveyed the pool of recipients.  Made with 100% wholegrain jumbo oats and nothing artificial, Toat’ly Oaty comes in handy microwaveable sachets which take just two and half minutes making it ideal for busy professionals who are always on the go.

Local nutritionist, Rachel Wright commented: 

“Evidence suggests it’s not just important to have a breakfast, but to have a healthy one such as porridge. As well as providing a good source of fibre, vitamins and minerals, porridge has a low Glycaemic Index which means it releases energy slowly keeping you fuller for longer.  Research indicates that eating whole grains regularly as part of a healthy diet and lifestyle may reduce the risk of many diseases such as heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and bowel cancer by up to 30%.”

Porridge is certainly a popular breakfast choice for working professionals with 45% of office workers in Northern Ireland eating porridge at least once a week and 29% eating it either daily or 2-3 times per week.

In GB an even greater proportion of those surveyed, at 61%, eat breakfast at work compared to 54% in Northern Ireland. Once again porridge is the top breakfast at work choice as revealed by 29% of GB respondents, followed by cereal at 22% and tea and toast at 21%.

Commenting on the findings, Danielle McBride, Brander Manager, White’s Oats added:

“We’re delighted to learn that porridge is not just a popular at home breakfast choice but also a popular option among working professionals in Northern Ireland. It’s also interesting to note that for so many of us time is a big factor in the morning. White’s Toat’ly Oaty Instant Porridge ticks all the boxes for a healthy and convenient breakfast offering 100% nutritional goodness in just over 2 minutes. So whether it’s at the desk or at home, we hope everyone makes the time to start the day with a bowl of White’s Porridge.”

The research also revealed:

-Among those who hadn’t eaten porridge before 42% claimed they didn’t like the taste; but after trying Toat’ly Oaty 59% of respondents rated the taste as either really good or good;

-Texture was another reason for not eating porridge according to 29% of respondents but after sampling Toat’ly Oaty, 58% ranked the texture as either good or really good.

White’s Toat’ly Oaty comes in four varieties: Original, Apple and Cinnamon, Wild Fruit and Multi Seed.

With only 115 calories per 30g serving* and packed full of vitamins and other key nutrients, Toat’ly Oaty is the quick and easy way of giving everyone a balanced and nutritional breakfast.

White’s Toat’ly Oaty Instant Porridge has a low GI index helping to release energy slowly throughout the morning and provides a rich source of soluble fibre beta-glucan which has been shown to help reduce cholesterol**. One 30g serving of Toat’ly Oaty* provides 1.3g of beta glucan which is over one third of the recommended daily intake of 3g per day.

Disclaimer

**The inclusion of oats as part of a diet low in saturated fat and a healthy lifestyle can help reduce cholesterol.

*Toat’ly Oaty Original

The findings are based on a survey of 7,695 working professionals- (1,701 in Northern Ireland and 5,994 in Great Britain). The survey was conducted as part of The Work Perk initiative on behalf of White’s Oats.

Charity Christmas Hamper Appeal

Local charity, Rural Support, is calling all local food and drink producers to help hard-hit farming families this festive season, by supporting its Christmas Hamper Appeal.

The local charity has teamed up with wind energy company, Simple Power, to launch its first ever ‘Christmas Hamper Scheme’ aimed at helping farming and rural families in need.

Rural Support, which provides help for farmers and rural families through a helpline offering a listening and signposting service, is asking local agri-businesses to donate products. In this first year, Rural Support, hopes to be able to deliver approximately 50 hampers to hard-hit families throughout Northern Ireland.

Rural Support’s Development Director, Jude McCann, said “Every year, families throughout Northern Ireland’s rural community face a difficult Christmas. Our hamper appeal aims to provide a little lift for these families that can make all the difference at this time of year. We plan to distribute in the region of 50 hampers across Northern Ireland and are calling on the many successful and vibrant local food producer and suppliers here to make a contribution. By kindly donating only 50 items of your product, you can make a huge difference to a rural family in need this Christmas.”

To get involved in the Rural Support ‘Christmas Hamper Scheme’, in partnership with Simple Power, call  02890 918 420 or email: sarah@jagocommunications.com.   For additional information, visit: www.simplepower.co/CSR.

Simple Power is committed to an on-going partnership with the local charity, providing financial support alongside fundraising activities.

Simple Power Chief Executive, Philip Rainey, commented, “We are delighted to launch this Christmas Hamper Scheme in partnership with Rural Support. Christmas can be a very special time for many but it’s important to acknowledge that it can also be a difficult time of year for those in hardship, particularly within the rural community.  We hope the Hampers will go some way towards providing a little Christmas cheer, alongside Rural Support’s very beneficial support service.”

Six UK cities (Belfast, Bournemouth, Cardiff, Liverpool, Newcastle and Stockport) will share one million pounds of funding to make healthy and sustainable food a defining characteristic of the city and use good food to address some of today’s most pressing social, economic and environmental problems including obesity, food poverty and climate change.

The UK’s first ‘Sustainable Food Cities’ programme aims to give everyone access to local, affordable and sustainable food. The funding will support the six cities to employ a dedicated officer to work with the local authority and partners such as schools, charities and restaurants to transform access to local, affordable and sustainable food for people across the city – setting it on its way to becoming a Sustainable Food City.

Tom Andrews, national programme manager of Sustainable Food Cities said; “Our vision is that Sustainable Food Cities will be places where every school, hospital, restaurant and workplace canteen serve only healthy and sustainable meals; where everyone has access to affordable fresh, seasonal, local and sustainably produced food no matter where they live; and where people of all ages and backgrounds have opportunities to learn about, grow and cook food.

“The programme is about using food to improve people’s health and wellbeing, creating new businesses and jobs and reducing our impact on the environment. Food is not only at the heart of some of today’s greatest challenges but is also a vital part of the solution. The six cities will become beacons of good practice to inspire other cities across the UK.”

The Sustainable Food Cities Network is an alliance of public, private and third sector organisations using food as a vehicle for driving positive changes.  More than eighty per cent of people now live in urban areas and people in towns and cities can have a huge impact on our food system. The Network helps people and places to share challenges, explore practical solutions and develop best practice in all aspects of sustainable food.

The Sustainable Food Cities programme led by the Soil Association, Food Matters and Sustain and funded by the Esmee Fairbairn Foundation, will create six exemplar models of what a city can do to transform its food culture. More than 100 urban areas across the UK are expected to join the network by the end of the three-year programme.

The Sustainable Food Cities Network is an alliance of public, private and third sector organisations using food as a vehicle for driving positive changes. The Network helps people and places to share challenges, explore practical solutions and develop best practice in all aspects of sustainable food.