Giant Offers Healthy Ideas Throughout the Year

Thousands of Healthy Ideas products on shelves

LANDOVER, Md., Dec. 27, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- Just in time to ring in the New Year, Giant Food of Landover, Md. is continuing their commitment to helping customers make healthier choices as well as sticking to those challenging New Year resolutions.

"Losing weight and eating better regularly rank as among the most common New Year's resolutions," said Andrea Astrachan, consumer advisor for Giant Food of Landover, Md. "There is no better place to make healthy choices than at the supermarket and Giant is committed to helping our customers stay on track with their healthy eating goals throughout the year."

In January 2011, Giant is reminding customers of their exclusive Healthy Ideas™ product labeling system. Since launching in January 2009, thousands of Giant brand and national brand perishable and nonperishable products feature the blue and green Healthy Ideas shelf tag that help customers identify healthy options as they shop the aisles.

Foods labeled with the Healthy Ideas symbol include most fresh fruits, vegetables and 100 percent fruit juice, as well as some canned, frozen and dried fruits and veggies; a variety of breads, cereals, rice and pasta; fat free dairy products, lower sodium soups, frozen meals, and some snack foods.

"Healthy Ideas is exclusive to our supermarkets and makes it easy for Giant customers to identify foods that fit into a healthy lifestyle," said Astrachan. "In order to receive the Healthy Ideas distinction, a product must meet certain criteria related to total fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium and sugar amounts that was developed by a team of registered dietitians using information from Dietary Guidelines for Americans, the USDA Food Pyramid and the Food & Drug Administration."

In addition to offering affordable healthy Giant brand and national brand products, Giant offers customers a variety of in-store solutions throughout the year to help maintain a healthy lifestyle and keep on track with healthy eating goals.

Customers will find helpful tips on including healthier foods in the diet along with quick and easy recipes in the sales circular.  A candy-free "Smile Aisle" checkout is available in every store to make shopping easier for parents and caregivers shopping with small children.  And a free "Kids Corner" activity sheet for small children promotes eating fruits and veggie using Nickelodeon characters.

Customers also can visit our website to find plenty of healthy recipes, tips for eating healthy on a budget, answers to frequently asked nutrition questions and a variety of other information by clicking on the Healthy Ideas tab at the top of the homepage at www.GiantFood.com.

Also available online, Giant's Passport to Nutrition is a web-based program to educate kids on nutrition and living healthy lifestyles in a fun and interactive way. The website, found at http://www.giantfood.com/living_well/passport.htm provides parents and teachers with the necessary tools to achieve healthy lifestyles both at home and at school.

About Giant Food of Landover, Md.

Giant Food LLC, headquartered in Landover, Md., operates 179 supermarkets in Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, and the District of Columbia, and employs approximately 22,000 associates. Included within the 179 stores are 163 full-service pharmacies. For more information on Giant, visit www.GiantFood.com.

SOURCE Giant Food of Landover, MD