Award-winning wholesaler and convenience retailer SPAR Scotland is celebrating a record-breaking year with SGFs Healthy Living Programme (HLP).
The company has delivered nineteen events and spoken to and engaged with over 2,000 primary school pupils with the Healthy Living Programme in SPAR stores around the country during 2023.
Events have included Big Breakfasts in local primary schools, when HLP go into primary schools and host a breakfast. SPAR Scotland has supported by providing all the produce for the breakfast and often SPAR store staff have also gone along to show their support.
SPAR Scotland stores hosted HLP visits throughout the year. During these instore events, free fruit is given out to children when local schools have visited the SPAR stores. In addition, tours of the stores and talks on the very best and worst foods to eat are given.
Finally, Cooking at Home continues to go from strength to strength. This instore promotion allows SPAR stores to give away a free reusable shopping bag and recipe cards.
Colin McLean, CEO of SPAR Scotland, said: “It is important for convenience retailers to play an active role in supporting the promotion of health and wellbeing. Our partnership with the Healthy Living Programme means we’re not just saying we’re promoting fresh produce and other healthier products in stores but we’re demonstrating how important we take the role of responsible retailing to ensure our customers have a healthier option to choose from. We look forward to supporting the SGF and the Healthy Living Programme in 2024.”
Going forward into 2024, SPAR Scotland has several exciting and new events planned with the team at HLP to promote healthier lifestyles to primary school children. The Scottish Women’s Cup will visit a SPAR store in Aberdeen in early February. An instore launch with Scotland Women’s National Team players later in February will support a national school sports day campaign and a mini-Olympic roadshow visiting SPAR stores during the summer months will be a further opportunity to encourage healthy eating and a healthy lifestyle in the run up to the Olympics.
Kathryn Neil, Director, said: “The partnership that we have developed with SPAR Scotland continues to go from strength to strength, the results from events in 2023 certainly proves this. SPAR Scotland are always keen to engage with any of the initiatives that HLP run in store and, more importantly, they see the benefit of ensuring that their future shoppers are educated about a balanced diet at an early age. HLP are looking forward to teaming up with SPAR Scotland again in 2024 and taking SPAR’s healthy living journey to a new level.
The Healthy Living Programme has been working with convenience retailers since 2004 and highlights fruit, vegetables, and healthier products available in stores. The programme is fully funded by the Scottish Government and aims to connect local schools with convenience retailers. So far, they have engaged with over 28,000 school children across Scotland.
