Maple Leaf Foods and Earth Rangers Unite Thousands of Canadian Children to Make Fighting Climate Change a Daily Habit

Challenge to reduce food waste keeps more than 19,000 plates of food out of landfills – that's equal to 18 times the weight of a grand piano!

MISSISSAUGA, ON, March 21, 2023 /PRNewswire/ - Maple Leaf Foods Inc. (TSX: MFI), the world's first major carbon neutral food company, in partnership with kids' conservation organization Earth Rangers, has harnessed the collective power of Canada's youngest generation to help combat the 2.2 million tonnes of food wasted in Canada annually – that's like throwing away the weight of two million bricks every day.

Launched in fall 2022, kids across the country took part in the Earth Rangers' app-based 'All Taste, No Waste' Challenge for six months. Children learned how to form and log environmentally friendly 'habits' such as selecting misshapen produce, composting, reusing leftovers and more. The challenge reinforced how small changes can have a big impact on the environment when we step up for environmental sustainability.

More than 9,300 Earth Rangers across Canada used fun resources to learn about and log over 119,000 new sustainable food habits, such as 'Being a Clean Plate Champion' where kids only dished up as much as they could eat, saving 19,192 plates of food from landfill – enough to provide lunch for a person for 53 years! The 'upcooking' habit prompted kids to log 14,834 meals made from leftovers – that's the weight of almost 1,000 bowling balls!

As a reward for being climate champions and logging 100,000 habits collectively, Earth Rangers across the country unlocked an 'All Taste, No Waste' leftovers-focused cookbook** as a 'thank you' for protecting our planet. The cookbook was curated by Maple Leaf Foods' Queen of Cuisine, Chef Sam Lazuric. Maple Leaf Foods sponsored the cookbook reward in response to 76 per cent of Canadians surveyed who expressed a desire for information about little changes they could make to help the environment¹. The free, downloadable resource available to families across the country will be welcomed given that Maple Leaf's research also revealed that 69 per cent of Canadians want examples of recipes that help reduce food waste².

Little Changes, Big Impact

The 'All Taste, No Waste' Challenge is part of Earth Rangers' 'Project 2050', a program funded by Environment and Climate Change Canada. Collective action through Project 2050 has resulted in rewards that have supported over 10,000 bees in the Northern Territories, a reforestation initiative in Kamloops BC and a species reintroduction initiative in Toronto which released Blanding's Turtles into rehabilitated wetlands.

"The fight against climate change starts at home with every member of the family, and to help preserve the planet, we need to empower every generation to learn how each of us can step up for sustainability and join this fight," says Randy Huffman, Chief Food Safety and Sustainability Officer at Maple Leaf Foods. "This family-focused challenge powerfully symbolizes that giving easy-to-incorporate habits to eliminate food waste will instill behaviours in children to last each mealtime, and a lifetime."

Stepping Up for Sustainability, One Habit at a Time

The challenge included habits that encouraged kids to get creative while combatting food waste, logging habits that have a measurable difference.

Maple Leaf Foods has been carbon neutral since 2019 and is on a journey to become the most sustainable protein company on earth. It is committed to empowering Canadians to fight against climate change, and the 'All Taste, No Waste' Challenge is just one example in a variety of campaigns. For example, the Maple Leaf Foods Green Glossary explains eco terminology in a family-friendly way and the Little Changes Home Challenge inspires little changes you can make in each room of the home to help the environment. The company stresses the importance of building on these efforts as new research by Maple Leaf Foods revealed that 76 per cent of Canadians recognize climate change is a critical issue and want to have an impact, but many feel overwhelmed by where to start.

"The success of the 'All Taste, No Waste' challenge proves that kids have a real 'appetite' to protect the planet and fight climate change and that with the right knowledge and tools, they can be a real force," says Tovah Barocas, President of Earth Rangers. "We encourage all families to follow their lead and see every mealtime as an opportunity to take a positive step towards sustainability."

To learn more about the 'All Taste, No Waste' challenge, click here.

Maple Leaf Foods is a carbon neutral company with a vision to be the most sustainable protein company on earth, responsibly producing food products under leading brands including Maple Leaf®, Maple Leaf Prime®, Maple Leaf Natural Selections®, Schneiders®, Schneiders® Country Naturals®, Mina®, Greenfield Natural Meat Co.®, Lightlife® and Field Roast™. The Company employs approximately 14,000 people and does business primarily in Canada, the U.S. and Asia. The Company is headquartered in Mississauga, Ontario and its shares trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange (MFI).

Earth Rangers is the largest youth conservation organization in the world, committed to empowering a new generation of environmental leaders. Earth Rangers instills environmental knowledge, positivity, and the confidence to take action in children. The free Earth Rangers app offers thousands of hours of education and activities that children can participate in at home and in their communities. Since 2020, members have completed over 724,000 environmental missions and raised over $500,000 for conservation. To learn more visit www.earthrangers.com.

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SOURCE Maple Leaf Foods Inc.