Shop for Healthier Foods at Loblaws®

Eating healthier is made easy with a variety of New! and Must Try! President's Choice® foods

BRAMPTON, ON, Feb. 21, 2013 /CNW/ - TSX: L: The team at Loblaws^® is dedicated to helping Canadians lead healthier lifestyles.  During the Bring Healthier Home™ campaign which launches in stores on February 22, customers can find lots of new PC® products that will make it easier to make more nutritious choices.

"Research* shows that eighty-five percent of Canadian families use mealtime as an opportunity to teach their children about healthier eating," says Tina Stewart, registered dietitian for Loblaw Companies Limited. "Getting your family to make more nutritious choices can be tricky which is why we created some new and easy ways to incorporate healthier eating into breakfast, lunch and dinner."

Here are five tips that can be easily integrated into family meal routines.

Tip #1: Maximize Your Meals

Thinly sliced to cook up quickly, our Must Try! PC® Blue Menu™ Chicken Breast Strips are a simple way to add lean protein to a variety of meals. Try it topped on salads, sandwiches, curries, fajitas, pastas and pizzas. Turkey Breast strips are also available.

The Must Try! PC^® Blue Menu™ Granola Boost™ with Protein Cereal is made with whole-grain oats and wheat flavoured with semi-sweet chocolate chips and cocoa and provides 6 grams or soy protein per 55 gram serving!  Plus, it's high in fibre and a source of 8 vitamins and minerals. The PC® Blue Menu™ Granola Boost™ comes in four tasty varieties each with its own benefit -Chocolate with Protein, Mixed Berry with Polyphenols, Banana Nut with Omega-3 and Apple Cinnamon with Fibre. Try it sprinkled over yogurt, topped with fruit or add a splash of skim milk and enjoy as a cereal.  "This yummy granola can even be enjoyed like a trail mix so throw a pack in your gym bag or keep one in your car for smart snacking on the go!" says Tina.

Must Try! PC® Coconut Water from Concentrate is made from young green coconuts. Just one cup delivers 480 mg of potassium (more than a medium sized banana!), is a source of magnesium and has only 45 calories. Try it added to fresh fruit smoothies for an extra helping of vitamins in the morning;  here's a Tropical Coconut Smoothie recipe available on pc.ca.

Tip #2: Grains Take Centre Stage

"Whole grains are an important source of nutrition because they contain all parts of a plant's seed which means they tend to have more nutrients than refined grains," says Tina. "Our new PC® Blue Menu™ Whole Grain Brown Rice with Lentils and Quinoa Blend Side Dish is mildly seasoned and packed with brown rice, lentils and quinoa, making it a convenient and healthier alternative to white rice."

Switch up your usual sides! Try adding our new PC® Blue Menu™ Sides Bulgar and Quinoa to your favorite meal for a medley of vegetables, grains and chickpeas ready in in just 7 minutes.

Tip #3: Healthier on the Go

Eating well on the go is always a challenge.  Here are a few easy, nutritious solutions. New PC® Seven Grain Melba Toast is a good option for busy mornings or hectic afternoons. Each 100 gram box contains 5 convenient pouches; it's available in Poppyseed or Pumpkin.

Fans of our best-selling PC® 0% M.F. Plain Greek Yogurt will be thrilled to hear it now comes in convenient single-serve cups. Easy to take on the go and to pack in lunches, each 142 g container provides 14 g of protein.  It's available in four flavours Plain, Peach & Passion fruit, Strawberry and Blueberry.

Looking for an alternative to baby food in glass jars? Try the New! PC® Organics™ Strained Baby Food in Squeezable Pouch. The squeezable BPA-free pouches mean added convenience and portability - with no sugar added, no artificial flavours or colours. "The pouches are easy to warm and can be squeezed directly onto a spoon or into a bowl so there's less mess," says Tina.

Tip #4: Reel in Flavour

Want something low in fat and sodium or a way to add lean protein? Consider Hoki fish and Tilapia. New! PC® Blue Menu® Wild Hoki Skinless Fillets from New Zealand have a mild-taste similar to cod and a texture that's firm yet flaky. Try it baked, sautéed, pan-fried or breaded - it's that versatile.

Our sumptuous new PC® Blue Menu® Tilapia is the first PC® product to be certified by the Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC), an independent, not-for-profit organization that manages the worldwide standards for responsibly farmed seafood. A white fish with a very clean taste and slightly sweet flavour, our tilapia will appeal to kids, too. If you want to keep things interesting by introducing different lean proteins into your diet, this is a fantastic way to do it.

Tip #5: Savvy Snacking

We all sneak in the occasional snack - there's no shame in that! The delicious New! PC® Blue Menu® Sea Salt Cannellini Bean Crisps have 8 g of fibre and 1.5 g of omega-3 per serving, not to mention a satisfying crunch! Also try out the Smoky Sweet Chili Flavour Adzuki Bean Crisps.

Those who prefer to eat organic can prepare for the inevitable cravings with our savoury new PC® Organics Cheddar Cheese Flavour Popcorn. To preserve the wholesome flavour, we insist on popping in small batches. And you can rest assured its third-party certified like all our PC® Organics products.

In addition to developing innovative products for the PC® Blue Menu® line, the team at Loblaws^® also helps shoppers make better choices through a variety of partnerships and programs such as Hypertension Canada, Canadian Diabetes Association and Dietitians of Canada. In-store pharmacists and dietitians are available to answer health questions and provide helpful tips. And, across Ontario, Guiding Stars®, a nutrition navigation program that provides at-a-glance-nutritional ratings for foods found in every department.

Learn more at www.pc.ca or in the new President's Choice^® Healthy Insider's Report^® and follow us on Twitter (@preschoice #healthyeating) and Facebook.

Grocery stores in Ontario that feature President's Choice® products and offer a variety of in-store programs include: Loblaws^®, Loblaw great food™, Fortinos^®, Zehrs Markets^®, Zehrs Great Food™, Your Independent Grocer^®, valu-mart^®, nofrills® and Real Canadian Superstore^®®.

*Findings are based on a Vision Critical online survey among 1,500 randomly selected Canadians with children under 18 years old in the household.

About Loblaw Companies LimitedTSX:L

Loblaw Companies Limited, a subsidiary of George Weston Limited, is Canada's largest food retailer and a leading provider of drugstore, general merchandise and financial products and services. Loblaw is one of the largest private sector employers in Canada. With more than 1,000 corporate and franchised stores from coast to coast, Loblaw and its franchisees employ more than 135,000 full-time and part-time employees. Through its portfolio of store formats, Loblaw is committed to providing Canadians with a wide, growing and successful range of products and services to meet the everyday household demands of Canadian consumers. Loblaw is known for the quality, innovation and value of its food offering. It offers Canada's strongest control (private) label program, including the unique President's Choice®, no name® and Joe Fresh® brands. In addition, the Company makes available to consumers President's Choice Financial® services and offers the PC® points loyalty program.

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SOURCE: Loblaw Companies Limited

For further information or to arrange an interview please contact:

Loblaw Companies Limited
905-459-2500/[email protected]

Laura Tulley, Hill+Knowlton Strategies
416-413-4635 / [email protected]