HONG KONG, Nov. 4, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Organized by St. James Settlement (SJS) and sponsored by Vitasoy International Holdings Limited (Vitasoy), the "Vitasoy Nutrition Exploration Journey" began with an opening ceremony on 31 October 2015 joined by nearly 300 primary school students and their parents. Among the officiators was celebrity guest Louis Cheung who shared his parental experience with all the guests particularly on a healthy diet for his son.
Fully supported by Vitasoy, the "Vitasoy Nutrition Exploration Journey" is a new program of SJS's "Grant-in-aid" Brightens Children's Lives Charity Project. Through a series of learning activities, it aims to enhance the nutrition knowledge of the students and their parents, and encourage them to have better eating habits for healthy growth. The program also includes subsidized English classes which will strengthen the students' English proficiency as well as self-confidence, achieving the goal of nourishing their body and mind.
As a prelude to the program, SJS and Vitasoy jointly conducted a survey in October via questionnaire among seven primary schools in the New Territories to find out about the understanding of the students and parents on nutrition. There were a total of 2,200 respondents, and the findings showed that more than 90% of the students and parents believed that a balanced diet would help to control weight and facilitate physical health. Some parents thought that the emotion and academic performance of their kids would be affected by the eating habits. Moreover, the results also showed that most of the parents believed nutritious drinks would help their kids to grow up healthier, and they would love to support their kids to invent a delicious and nutritious drink.
Cooke Cheung, Assistant Chief Executive Officer of SJS said, "Around 200,000 children live under the poverty line in Hong Kong, representing 25% of the children population of Hong Kong. These children are deprived of many learning opportunities commonly enjoyed by others, while some of them and their parents are even lacking the knowledge of food nutrition. The "Vitasoy Nutrition Exploration Journey" does not only enrich them with nutrition knowledge but also supports in learning English presentation and writing skills through subsidized classes. It is a great learning support and aligns well with the objectives of the 'Grant-in-aid' Brightens Children's Lives Charity Project."
Through partnership with various corporations, the "Grant-in-aid" Brightens Children's Lives Charity Project aims at improving the learning conditions of underprivileged children aged 3-15, allowing them to have a better and diversified development, offset the deficiency in learning resources and creating a brighter future for them.
Charles Chyi, CEO of Vitasoy Hong Kong, said in support of the "Grant-in-aid" Brightens Children's Lives Charity Project, "With Nutrition, Taste and Sustainability as the guidelines of Vitasoy's portfolio offerings, Vitasoy produces tasty and high quality products for the public to enjoy. We are concerned about the sustainability of the environment and community, as well as the physical and mental health of teenagers and children. The next generation has a pivotal impact to the sustainability of society. Vitasoy is glad to have the opportunity to partner with SJS and sponsor the "Vitasoy Nutrition Exploration Journey", a good initiative to promote the students' knowledge on nutrition and their physical and mental health."
This inaugural "Vitasoy Nutrition Exploration Journey" has invited a registered dietitian to write a "Diet Guide for Primary Students", and will arrange more than 200 primary school students from seven different schools in the New Territories to attend different activities and learning classes from November 2015 to March 2016, in order to enhance their knowledge about nutrition. The program included six English classes on presentation and writing skills, and visits to a food bank and Vitasoy's factory, so as to let the students learn about food resources and drinks production. As a finale, all participating students will join the first "Little Drinks Inventors Competition" next year. The competition aims at inspiring the creativities of the children and putting their learning into practice.
About St. James' Settlement
St. James' Settlement was founded in 1949 by Sheng Kung Hui based on Christianity. It is a multi-social service agency which provides high quality comprehensive services to meet the diverse needs of our society, to enable the individuals to help themselves and to help others, and to build an integrated and harmonious community. The 13-storey headquarter of St. James' Settlement is situated on 85 Stone Nullah Lane. Currently, there are altogether 58 service points over the territory. The core services include continuing support services for the elderly, rehabilitation services, family and counseling services, community development services, integrated youth services as well as charity projects for the deprived group and etc., serving over 29,000 persons every day. As a non-profit making social service organization, St. James' Settlement uphold the principle of serving "The Poor and the Weak" in spite of the challenges in recent years.
SJS Website: http://www.sjs.org.hk/
About Vitasoy
Vitasoy International Holdings Limited is a leading manufacturer and distributor of plant based food and beverages, headquartered in Hong Kong. Since its establishment in 1940 by Dr Kwee-seong Lo, Vitasoy has been promoting sustainable nutrition through provision of a variety of high-quality products. With Nutrition, Taste and Sustainability as the guidelines of our portfolio offerings, we integrate our business into socially responsible activities and contribute to the communities that we serve. Currently, the Group's brands and products are available in more than 40 markets worldwide and supplied by 8 manufacturing facilities in Hong Kong, Mainland China, Australia, the United States and Singapore. The Company is listed on the main board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange with SEHK Code 0345.
Vitasoy website: www.vitasoy.com
Vitasoy Nutrition Exploration Journey
School Survey
Background
St. James Settlement (SJS) conducted a survey during September and October 2015 among the schools that have participated in "Vitasoy Nutrition Exploration Journey". The survey examines the level of nutrition knowledge and English learning initiatives of the primary school students and their parents. The findings would be used as a reference in designing the "Vitasoy Nutrition Exploration Journey" activities. There were 7 schools in total participated in the survey, coming from Tuen Mun, Yuen Long, Sheung Shui and Tsing Yi.
The Respondents
The survey was conducted by anonymous questionnaires, targeted at primary 4-5 students and their parents. There were 2,700 questionnaires distributed in total with 2,242 respondents, with a response rate of more than 80%. The respondents included 1,132 primary school students (45% male and 49% female, 5% did not indicate the gender) and 1,110 parents.
Key Survey Findings:
| Students' response: |
Parents' response: |
| - 92% of the students believed that a balanced diet would help to control weight and facilitate physical health |
- 92% of the parents believed that a balanced diet has an impact on their children's health. 35% think that it will affect their kids' emotion while 32% think that it will affect the academic performance |
| - 89% of the students wish to learn more about nutrition |
- 67% of the parents try to use balanced diet to control their children's weight |
| - 93% of the students think that nutritious drinks would help them grow up healthier |
- 83% of the parents wish their children to know more about nutrition |
| - 86% of the students is looking to invent a delicious and nutritious drinks |
- 92% of the parents think that nutritious drinks would help their children grow up healthier |
| - 56% of the students wish to learn English in order to introduce their self-invented drinks |
- 89% of the parents is willing to support their children to invent a delicious and nutritious drinks |
| - 87% of the parents support their children to learn how to introduce their self-invented drinks in English |
Conclusion:
Most of the students wish to learn more about nutrition and think that it would facilitate their healthy growth and weight control. More than 90% of the parents and students think that nutritious drinks would help them grow up healthier. Most of the parents agreed that a balanced diet has a positive effect on their children, especially on the emotional and academic performance. These figures show that the "Vitasoy Nutrition Exploration Journey" meets the need of the students and the parents. The subsidized English classes would strengthen the students' confidence and learning abilities, nourish both their body and mind.
