Tate & Lyle, a global provider of food and beverage ingredients, and Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos Mexico, a charitable organisation that provides a home for thousands of orphaned, abandoned and vulnerable children across Mexico, Central and South America, have engaged in a partnership to expand the sustainable production of fresh fruit and vegetables in greenhouses at the charity’s residences in the state of Morelos, Mexico which house more than 650 children.
Through corporate funding, pro-bono expertise, and volunteer services, the company will work alongside the charity’s staff and its residents to help enable the production of fresh fruits and vegetables to be used in the children’s meals. The partnership will also provide education aimed to support student health and well-being and improve the growing practices used.
Online and in-person mentorship courses and talks will be run by female employees from the company’s local office, designed to strengthen and empower the girls of NPH in their own educational development. The company will also offer training to the charity’s staff and volunteers, and the children they serve, in the areas of food safety, improving nutrition and quality processes.
Oswaldo Nardinelli, General Manager of Tate & Lyle in Latin America, said: “Our Mexico team is proud and enthusiastic to partner with Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos Mexico. The sustainable greenhouse project is an incredible opportunity for us to not only improve the lives of Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos children and staff, but also to ensure we at Tate & Lyle can help create positive and meaningful change in our local communities.”
Rafael Bermúdez Gutiérrez, National Director Mexico, said: “Our Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos homes in Morelos are unique in that they have dedicated spaces to support sustainable growing practices and self-sufficiency in order to provide food for our residents. Our new partnership with Tate & Lyle not only helps us expand and extend into new greenhouse production, but also allows us the opportunity for personal connection, knowledge exchange, and mentorship which is so important to the children and volunteers who help bring our projects to life. We look forward to our work together in the months ahead.”