This week the Campbell Soup Company unveiled a plan to reduce childhood obesity and hunger in Camden, Campbell’s home since 1869. The company will invest $10 million over ten years with the goal of reducing childhood obesity and hunger in Camden’s 23,000 children by 50 percent. Campbell’s President and CEO Douglas R. Conant said, “Obesity is a national crisis, but it is even more acute in Camden. We absolutely believe this important effort can nourish the lives of thousands of Camden children, both physically and emotionally, and help prepare them for a productive future.”
Nearly all Camden’s school-age children are enrolled in free school breakfast and lunch programs. Obesity rates for children ages 3 to 19 in Camden are nearly 40 percent, significantly above the national average of 32 percent 1. Thirty-five percent of Camden children, ages 3 to 5, are overweight or obese, compared with the national average of 21 percent. Forty-four percent of Hispanic children in Camden are overweight or obese, compared with the national average of 38 percent.
