Ahold USA/Giant-Carlisle to Host 2011 Dietitian Summit

Field Trip Factory has selected Ahold USA and its Giant-Carlisle division to serve as the retail host for the Chicago-based organization’s third annual Dietitian Summit. The event, which aims to build relationships among nutrition professionals and raise awareness of the food industry’s commitment to consumer health, is scheduled to take place May 18-20 at the Giant Super Food Store in Willow Grove, Pa. Previous summits were held in Scottsdale, Ariz. and Chicago.

“Hosting the 2011 Dietitian Summit is a wonderful opportunity for Ahold USA to share and demonstrate our own health-and-wellness programs to others within the industry,” noted Shirley Axe, health and wellness manager at Quincy, Mass.-based Ahold USA.

About 40 retail dietitians and nutritionists are expected to attend the three-day conference. As well as swapping information with their counterparts from other grocery retailers, attendees will hear from a select group of manufacturers, public health officials and health-and-wellness-related publishers and authors.

Among Ahold USA’s healthy-living initiatives is “Healthy Ideas,” an exclusive product-labeling system encompassing about 5,000 corporate and national brand perishable and nonperishable products that feature signature blue and green shelf tags to help customers identify nutritious options while shopping, and “Passport to Nutrition,” a Web-based program that teaches children about nutrition and healthy activities in an entertaining and interactive way.

Ahold USA, part of Amsterdam-based retail conglomerate Ahold, supports four regional divisions that operate more than 750 supermarkets in 13 states and the District of Columbia. The divisions are Stop & Shop New England, Stop & Shop New York Metro, Giant-Landover, and Giant-Carlisle. Ahold USA also operates online grocer Peapod.

Field Trip Factory specializes in experience based education for all ages in real-life environments, including supermarkets.