News - News releases
October 27, 2008
U.S. House of Representatives Proclaim October 29 as Apple Crunch Day
Statewide Celebration engaged more than 850 Pennsylvania schools in 2007
Hershey, Pa. – The crunch of apples will be heard around the Commonwealth on Wednesday, October 29 as schools celebrate Apple Crunch. This annual, statewide celebration now in its fifth year has been recognized by the U. S. House of Representatives for promoting the apple and other apple products as healthy snacks.
House Resolution 1143 sponsored by Congressman Todd R. Platts, states "Apple Crunch, held on October 29, 2008, is an event that focuses on healthy food choices, particularly apples, for students, schools and the community."
Organized by Pennsylvania Advocates for Nutrition & Activity (PANA), Apple Crunch emphasizes healthy snacking for youth and families. As one of the top six apple producing states, according to the U.S. Apple Association, the event is held each October during National Apple Month. Schools celebrate this event by featuring apple recipes during lunch, holding apple tastings, leading storybook readings of"Johnny Appleseed" and visiting local farmers' markets.
Apple Crunch is one of three celebrations hosted annually by PANA to encourage youth to eat healthy and be active. The other two events - Go for the Greens held in March and Move it Outside in April - are also celebrated by schools, community recreation centers and increasingly workplaces to promote an energy-balanced lifestyle (balancing the calories taken in through food and drink with the energy expended through activity).
"Through the years, Apple Crunch has been our most widely celebrated event," commented PANA Executive Director Allison Topper. "With the support of National Apple Month, we are delighted to see this celebration growing in popularity across the country."
Apple Crunch 2008 is supported in part by Appeeling Fruit, National Apple Month, and the Center for Nutrition and Activity Promotion at Penn State Hershey Children's Hospital.
View a copy of the Congressional Record (PDF)
Congressman Todd Platts celebrates National Apple Month and Apple Crunch.
Pictured L to R: Stan Brown, owner, Brown’s Orchard (Loganville, Pa.); Kay Rentzel, program director, National Apple Month; Honorable Todd Platts, U.S. House of Representatives; Allison Topper, executive director, Center for Nutrition and Activity Promotion at Penn State Hershey Children's Hospital
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Since 2003, Pennsylvania Advocates for Nutrition and Activity have worked
collectively to make it easier to be healthy in the places where we live, learn, work
and play. By bringing together health and wellness champions at the local,
regional and state level, the network is changing environments to support healthy
eating and physical activity options. For more information about PANA’s
programs, campaigns and events, please visit www.nrgbalance.org.
“The stellar interaction between the Center and administrators at six PA public schools led to a very successful week-long health ride. I enjoyed working with the Center and would highly recommend them as partners in any future projects.”
