Raley’s Offers Free Fruit to Kids

Raley’s Supermarkets is providing free fruit to kids in stores while parents shop, furthering its effort to help teach customers healthy eating habits.

The grocer is placing baskets of fresh fruit at the entrance of each store, allowing kids under the age of 12 to grab a piece for a nutritious snack. The initiative is part of Raley’s multidimensional Let’s Begin effort, in which it shares its vision of health and wellness with customers, inviting others to take small steps toward a healthier lifestyle through education, personal goal setting and sharing.

Making fresh fruit as accessible as possible to kids still learning how to eat healthy can help instill better dietary choices and practices later in life. Some 87 percent of Americans don’t meet recommendations for daily fruit consumption. Additionally, there's a misconception that fruits and vegetables are more expensive than other foods, despite their being less expensive than many less-nutritious options.

“Fruit is a delicious and easy way for kids to get more fiber and important nutrition into their day, keeping their immune system strong and their taste buds happy,” said Emmie Satrazemis, Raley’s wellness evangelist.

Earlier this month, Landover, Md.-based Giant Food LLC, a division of Ahold Delhaize, introduced a similar program in its stores, starting with bananas.

West Sacramento, Calif.-based Raley’s operates 121 stores in Northern California and Nevada under four banners: Raley’s Supermarkets, Bel Air Markets, Nob Hill Foods and Food Source.