Media

Pound For Pound Challenge fights hunger through weight loss

NBC’s The Biggest Loser, General Mills and SUBWAY® join forces to benefit Feeding America

NBC’s “The Biggest Loser: Couples,” General Mills, SUBWAY® and Feeding America are partnering on the Pound For Pound Challenge, a national initiative encouraging Americans to lose weight to combat hunger in their local communities. The weight participants pledge to lose will help Feeding America secure groceries on behalf of local food banks. Pound For Pound Challenge updates will air throughout season 11 of NBC’s “The Biggest Loser: Couples,” which premiered yesterday at 8 p.m. ET.

In its third year, the Pound For Pound Challenge re-emerges at a crucial time. According to recent statistics from the United States Department of Agriculture, roughly 50 million people in the United States struggled with hunger at some point in 2009.

“Hunger continues to be a daily struggle for millions of families across America,” said Vicki Escarra, president and CEO, Feeding America. “By simply participating in the Pound For Pound Challenge, Americans can support our network of more than 200 food banks by helping us secure much needed groceries.”

New this year, participants can enter the Challenge by pledging to maintain their current weight for a contribution equal to five pounds of weight loss. Additionally, this year marks the introduction of a team option on www.pfpchallenge.com. In the spirit of NBC’s “The Biggest Loser: Couples,” teams can compete online and will be ranked nationally.

The Pound For Pound Challenge hopes to help Feeding America secure up to 9.4 million pounds of groceries on behalf of local food banks. For every pound Americans pledge to lose, the Pound For Pound Challenge will donate 11 cents to Feeding America, up to a maximum donation of $1,040,000. Eleven cents is enough to secure one pound of groceries on behalf of a local food bank.  

“As one of the largest food companies in the world, General Mills recognizes our responsibility to give back,” said John Haugen, vice president, Health and Wellness at General Mills. “We’ve helped Feeding America deliver more than 9.7 million pounds of groceries to its local food banks through the Pound For Pound Challenge over the past two years, and we are pleased to continue the program to help in the fight against hunger.”

General Mills offers a number of healthy food options to help keep dieters on track, including; Yoplait Light, Yoplait Greek, Yoplait Frozen Smoothie, Fiber One Original Cereal, Fiber One 90 Calorie Bar, MultiGrain Cheerios, Progresso Soup and Lärabar.

“The Pound For Pound Challenge gives Americans an extra incentive to get in shape and make healthy changes to their lives,” said Alison Sweeney, host of NBC’s “The Biggest Loser: Couples.” “I love this program because it inspires people to fight the hunger crisis by improving their own health.”  

Each person who pledges will be matched with a local Feeding America food bank nearest to their residence. To ignite friendly competition, the pounds pledged by individual cities and states will be tracked and ranked at www.pfpchallenge.com.

“As we enter season 11, NBC’s ‘The Biggest Loser: Couples’ is more passionate than ever to not only help Americans develop a healthy relationship with food, but also to call attention to the number of Americans who go without food,” said Chad Bennett, Vice President of Reveille, the production company behind NBC’s “The Biggest Loser: Couples.”

“Whether it is for breakfast, lunch or dinner, SUBWAY® is a brand that supports consumers’ desire to be healthy and active. The Pound For Pound Challenge is a natural strategic fit with our approach and it benefits both consumers and their communities,” said Tony Pace, Chief Marketing Officer of the SUBWAY® Franchisee Advertising Fund Trust.

To learn more about the Challenge, visit www.pfpchallenge.com or www.biggestloser.com. 

About General Mills
One of the world's leading food companies, General Mills operates in more than 100 countries and markets more than 100 consumer brands, including Cheerios, Häagen-Dazs, Nature Valley, Betty Crocker, Pillsbury, Green Giant, Old El Paso, Progresso, Yoplait, Cascadian Farm, Muir Glen, and more. Headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA, General Mills had fiscal 2010 global net sales of US$16 billion, including the company’s $1.2 billion proportionate share of joint venture net sales.

About Feeding America
Feeding America provides low-income individuals and families with the fuel to survive and even thrive. As the nation's leading domestic hunger-relief charity, our network members supply food to more than 37 million Americans each year, including 14 million children and 3 million seniors. Serving the entire United States, more than 200 member food banks support 61,000 agencies that address hunger in all of its forms. For more information on how you can fight hunger in your community and across the country, visit http://www.feedingamerica.org. Find us on Facebook at facebook.com/FeedingAmerica or follow our news on Twitter at twitter.com/FeedingAmerica.

About The Biggest Loser
The Biggest Loser airs on NBC Tuesdays at 8 pm (ET). The first reality series where everybody "loses," The Biggest Loser challenges and encourages overweight contestants to shed pounds in a safe and recommended manner through comprehensive diet and exercise as they compete for a grand prize of $250,000. Hosted by Alison Sweeney, the series provides the contestants with challenges, temptations, weigh-ins and eliminations until the final contestant remains to claim the title of "the biggest loser." Each team works out under the supervision of professional trainers Jillian Michaels and Bob Harper. The Biggest Loser is a production of Reveille LLC, 25/7 Productions and 3 Ball Productions.
 
Beyond the U.S. where more than 100 episodes of the show have aired, The Biggest Loser has become a worldwide hit appearing in over 90 countries and produced in 28 countries. Since its debut in 2004, The Biggest Loser has grown to become a standalone health and lifestyle brand by developing tools and products inspired by the show and approved by its doctors and experts. Anchored by the online, subscription-based extension of the show, Biggestloserclub.com, from Rodale, The Biggest Loser consumer products program has generated over $100 million in spending, with presence at more than 25,000 major retailers to date. The program currently features a wide variety of health and fitness products including The Biggest Loser video game for Wii and Nintendo DS & DSi, The Biggest Loser Resort at Fitness Ridge, which is a full-service, destination health & fitness spa, The Biggest Loser Meal Plan, a New York Times best-selling books series, a best-selling fitness DVD series, a line of appliances, fitness equipment, protein supplements and several other health and lifestyle based products. The Biggest Loser was recognized as a top brand of the year in Advertising Age's 2008 Marketing 50. Check out www.biggestloser.com for more information.

About SUBWAY® Restaurants
The SUBWAY® restaurant chain is the world's largest submarine sandwich franchise, with more than 33,000 locations in 91 countries. Headquartered in Milford, Connecticut, and with regional offices in Amsterdam, Beirut, Brisbane, Miami, and Singapore, the SUBWAY® chain was co-founded by Fred DeLuca and Dr. Peter Buck in 1965. The SUBWAY® brand was ranked the number one global franchise opportunity in Entrepreneur magazine's 2010 "Annual Franchise 500" listing for the 17th time in 23 years.  For more information about the SUBWAY® chain, visit www.subway.com and www.subwayfreshbuzz.com. SUBWAY® is a registered trademark of Doctor's Associates Inc.