HOUSTON, TX - As a trade news writer, one of the most fulfilling stories to come by is those of powerful companies coming together for the greater good. Recently, I had the chance to speak with Rich Dachman, Chief Executive Officer of Brighter Bites, and Neil Russell, Sysco’s Senior Vice President of Corporate Affairs and Chief Communications Officer, to discuss the fruits of the companies’ formidable alliance.
“This partnership started years ago, and over the years Sysco’s FreshPoint division has supported Brighter Bites through financial contributions and logistical assistance,” Rich explained to me. “Their willingness to expand our work together over the years has been remarkable. Since the pandemic began, we have needed a committed partner to help aggregate produce, assemble individual family produce boxes, and deliver these boxes to our operations in Texas cities. We are so pleased Sysco and FreshPoint have filled these critical roles.”
The duo works to provide communities with fresh produce and nutrition education to promote healthy eating and drive fruit and vegetable consumption. Brighter Bites has served over 13,000 families and distributed approximately 1.4 million pounds of fresh produce in Dallas and Austin, Texas, since the current phase of the alliance kicked off in February 2021.
“The shared goal of our alliance is to serve communities with high-quality fresh produce and nutrition education resources to empower families to utilize the produce for lifelong healthy habits,” Neil noted. “We work together with Brighter Bites to gather varieties of bulk produce, incorporate volunteers from both organizations, and deliver produce directly into the families’ hands.”
Robert Gordon, President of FreshPoint, also weighed in on the successful partnership.
“We are dedicated to the Brighter Bites mission to create communities of health through fresh food," he said. "Our organization and our team members have bought into the program, and this allows us to fully support the nonprofit in a variety of ways. We see this collaboration as a positive step in providing fresh produce to families throughout our communities.”
The partnership with FreshPoint has allowed Brighter Bites to address the unique needs of school districts and campuses even as COVID-19 remains a factor, as well as ensure that families can experience the full Brighter Bites program throughout the 16-week programming period.
If you are interested in donating produce to Brighter Bites, or providing other support, please contact Amy Priebe, Sourcing Manager.
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