Family Meals Blog Posts

  • Family Meals Friday: Frugal Food Finds & the Consumer

    Sep 20, 2024 3 min read
    Concern with food prices from 2023 to 2024 remains stable, according to the 2024 U.S. Grocery Shopper Trends: Return to Routine report — but there’s no denying that consumers are looking to optimize value, aisle by aisle, product by product. ...
  • Heartfelt Connections: Olympic Inspiration Remind Why Family Meals Are Important

    Aug 16, 2024 3 min read
    All the hardware has been awarded, the medal count tallied and the Olympic flame of the 2024 Paris games has been extinguished. As we reflect on the performances, the stories, and the efforts of the Olympic athletes competing on the global stage, ...
  • Dinner, Drinks, and Revelations

    Jul 24, 2024 2 min read
    A year ago, after dinner and drinks out with friends, I discovered that I am an extrovert, albeit a sometimes shy one. Much like a family meal can be more balanced nutritionally than one eaten alone, according to the 2024 Family Meals Barometer ...
  • An Unexpected Family Meals Testimonial

    Jun 28, 2024 2 min read
    The 2024 Google Doodle contest winner pays homage with her artwork that family meals have always provided her with a safe haven to bond more deeply with the people who matter the ...
  • A Decade of Highlighting Family Meals

    Apr 30, 2024 2 min read
    This September, the FMI Foundation celebrates our tenth National Family Meals Month. This anniversary year provides a great opportunity to celebrate how far we’ve come and realize future opportunities for promoting the benefits of family ...
  • Top 10 Reasons to Start Planning for Family Meals Month Now

    Apr 11, 2024 3 min read
    September is Family Meals Month – that special 30-day period when FMI invites you to incentivize your shoppers to enjoy the glorious nutritional, emotional and mental health benefits of sharing mealtime with their loved ones. That means if you ...
  • Key Takeaways from FMI’s In-Person Nutrition and Health Gathering

    Jan 12, 2024 3 min read
    There’s nothing like getting together in person to discuss the biggest nutrition, health and well-being topics impacting the food industry. After three years of meeting virtually, we are thrilled that the FMI Health and Well-being Council had the ...
  • Celebrating Family Meals with the Gold Plate Awards

    Oct 3, 2023 2 min read
    We'd love to hear how your company celebrated Family Meals Month and we invite you to apply to 2023's Gold Plate ...

News Releases

The FMI Foundation Kicks Off 10th Annual National Family Meals Month™

Sep 5, 2024, 00:00 AM by Laura Judy
Catalyzed by the 10th Anniversary of National Family Meals Month™, and in partnership with the National Federation of Families, the FMI Foundation is rallying Americans to have one more shared meal per week at home and to capture and socialize the joy.

Issues "Share-a-Meal-Share-a-Photo" Challenge

Family meals are a building block to bolster emotional, physical and mental health.
— David Fikes, executive director of the FMI Foundation

ARLINGTON, VA, UNITED STATES -- The FMI Foundation, creator and steward of the Family Meals Movement, today announced a challenge to families across America to "share a meal and share a photo." Catalyzed by the 10th Anniversary of National Family Meals Month™, and in partnership with the National Federation of Families, the FMI Foundation is rallying Americans to have one more shared meal per week at home and to capture and socialize the joy. Photos can be submitted to this link to join the national mosaic of families breaking bread together during the month of September. Photos also can be posted to any social media platform using the hashtags #familymealsmonth and #familymealsmovement.

"We know there is no one-size-fits-all definition of family today, just like there is no one place where people come together to share meals," said David Fikes, executive director of the FMI Foundation. "We want to celebrate the many different ways families of all kinds are sharing meals together to shine a light on the concept that regardless of when or what one eats, meals shared together offer extraordinary benefits."

Research shows enjoying family meals helps build emotional, physical, and mental health. They are associated with increased fruit and vegetable intake, reduced incidence of overweight and obesity, and better social interactions. , , They also may help to diffuse the negativity of today's charged socio-political climate; most Americans agree family meals are a great time to have and teach respectful interactions.

As part of their groundbreaking partnership, the FMI Foundation, together with the National Federation of Families, invites families nationwide to submit their photos today to join the movement and become part of the nation's champions for family meals. "Family meals are a building block to bolster emotional, physical and mental health," added Fikes. "We are thrilled to have the National Federation of Families partner with the FMI Foundation to draw attention to this national initiative."

National Family Meals Month™ is celebrated each September for the last decade. This national initiative has generated so much momentum that it is now known as the Family Meals Movement. Embraced year-round, the movement raises awareness for the many benefits of family meals. Learn more about the physical, mental, and social benefits of family meals at familymealsmovement.org and follow #familymealsmonth and #familymealsmovement on social media.

About the FMI Foundation

Established in 1996, the FMI Foundation seeks to ensure continued quality and efficiency in the food retailing system and is operated for charitable, educational, and scientific purposes. To help support the role of food retailing, the FMI Foundation focuses on research, education, and resources in the area of health and well-being, which embraces food safety, nutrition and social responsibility concerns. For information regarding the FMI foundation, visit www.fmifoundation.org. #familymealsmonth; #familymealsmovement.

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