Fuel Up to Play 60 Brand Ambassador Jerome Baker and Florida Power & Light Company President and CEO Eric Silagy participated in the ribbon cutting event at Boyd Anderson High School

(Black PR Wire) Fort Lauderdale, FL -- WHO: GENYOUth, a national nonprofit dedicated to creating healthier school communities, partnered with the Miami Super Bowl Host Committee, Florida Power & Light Company (FPL), and the Dairy Council of Florida to provide a Grab and Go Breakfast Cart to 14 high schools in Broward County that provided free meals for students.

The donation was part of a commitment launched last October to provide 100 Grab and Go Breakfast Carts to South Florida schools as part of the Florida Super School Breakfast Initiative. Aligned with Super Bowl LIV and the 100th anniversary of the NFL, the breakfast carts help tackle food insecurity and help ensure students start each day with a nutritious breakfast. 

There are 100 schools in Broward, Miami-Dade and Palm Beach counties that will receive a Grab and Go Breakfast Cart, milk barrel and point-of-sale system for tracking. The Florida Super School Breakfast Initiative will help increase access to 10 million school meals for students to meet the health and wellness needs of youth in South Florida.

WHAT: Florida Super School Breakfast Initiative’s Grab and Go Breakfast Cart ribbon cutting event at Broward’s Boyd Anderson High School to recognize FPL’s support and to promote the importance of school breakfast.

Members of the Super Bowl Host Committee, Fuel Up to Play 60 Ambassador Jerome Baker, FPL President and CEO Eric Silagy and Boyd Anderson Assistant Principals Kristie Y. Ford and Winifred J. Porter Jr., joined school district and community leaders to unveil the Fuel Up to Play 60 branded Grab and Go Breakfast Cart to students.

WHERE/WHEN:  The event took place on Wednesday, Jan. 22 at 9:30 a.m. at Boyd Anderson High School, 3050 NW 41st St., Lauderdale Lakes, Fla.

WHY: Research shows that good nutrition, adequate physical activity and quality sleep help to advance students’ health and academic performance, however, USDA data states that 88% of schools report lacking at least one piece of equipment they need to serve healthier foods.

The statistics surrounding food insecurity for children in Florida are staggering:

• 20% of children in Florida live in poverty; 18% of children in Broward County live in poverty; 22% of children in Miami-Dade County live in poverty; 19% of children in Palm Beach County live in poverty;
• 37% of Florida youth are classified as obese, compared to the national average of 29%;
• Florida is ranked 40 out of 52 in breakfast participation in schools in the country*;
• The three South Florida school districts combined – Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach County – are leaving more than $23,500,000 in federal funding on the table by not serving more breakfast as part of the School Breakfast Program. 

*The Food Research & Action Center (FRAC) sets an ambitious but achievable goal of reaching 70 low-income students with breakfast for every 100 participating in school lunch. Florida is currently about 19 percentage points below this national goal at 51.2%. 

Statistics for Boyd Anderson High School:

• Free/reduced meal participation rate of 87%
• Breakfast average daily participation rate of only 28%
• Current enrollment is 1,774 students

The Super School Breakfast initiative is made possible through the generous support of Florida Blue, Florida Power & Light Company, Chevron along with Sunshine Gasoline Distributors Inc. and the Dairy Council of Florida.

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