Vitamix Foundation Announces 2026 Grantees Advancing Nutrition and Health from Pregnancy to Early Childhood

Five partners supported to strengthen maternal health, early childhood nutrition, and national collaboration. 06.24.2026

CLEVELAND, OH (June 24, 2026) — The Vitamix Foundation is proud to announce the recipients of its 2026 grant cycle, awarding over $480,000 to five partners working to expand access to nutritious food, strengthen early childhood nutrition education, and improve health outcomes for families and communities nationwide.

This year’s grantees are addressing some of the most pressing challenges in nutrition and health, from rising rates of diet-related disease among children to food insecurity and inequitable access to healthy, whole foods. Through a range of approaches touching individuals to systems-level changes, together these partners are working to ensure that moms, babies, and families have the knowledge, resources, and support needed to thrive.

• Brighter Bites will provide families with fresh fruits and vegetables alongside hands-on nutrition education, while exploring and testing new models for scaling their impact. By partnering with schools and community organizations, Brighter Bites empowers children and their families to build lifelong healthy eating habits.
• National WIC Association will strengthen and elevate the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), by providing technical assistance and support to WIC providers and leaders. These efforts will ensure that more families can access critical nutrition support, education, and healthy foods during key periods of maternal and early childhood development.
• Teaching Kitchen Collaborative (TKC) will build on its April 2026 convening in Washington, D.C., where national leaders across medical education, policy, and nutrition science came together to advance best practices in medical nutrition education. This next phase will translate those insights into shared resources and actionable next steps to integrate nutrition more fully into medical education and practice nationwide.
• CDC Foundation will maintain and strengthen the Hunger, Nutrition, and Health in Pregnancy (HNH-P) Action Network, bringing together partners across sectors committed to improving nutrition and health outcomes for pregnant people and families. The network’s leadership will focus on strategic planning, expanding member engagement, and developing resources to sustain and grow a national movement dedicated to health equity and the eradication of hunger.
• Arkansas Children’s Research Institute, in partnership with the ENRICH Center at Louisiana Tech University, will advance Year 2 of the WISE Babies evaluation, an evidence-based program designed for children from birth to age three. Building on a successful pilot, the project will expand to new early childcare education sites across Arkansas and Louisiana while continuing a rigorous randomized control study to strengthen the evidence for promoting fruit and vegetable consumption in early childhood.

“Our partners are advancing powerful solutions to improve how families access and experience nutrition. They are rethinking how we train trusted messengers and healthcare providers, inspiring children to explore and love fruits and vegetables, and building collaborations that strengthen the systems supporting families,” said Natalie Haynes, Executive Director of the Vitamix Foundation. “Their work is helping make nutritious food and education more accessible and laying the groundwork for healthier futures for communities across the country.”

To learn more about the Vitamix Foundation and its impact, visit vitamixfoundation.org.

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About The Vitamix Foundation

The Vitamix Foundation is a nonprofit, grantmaking organization established by Vitamix to help shape a nation where diet-driven illness does not exist. Its mission is to collaborate and partner with others to further the knowledge, consumption, and enjoyment of plant-based whole foods. Grantmaking focuses on advancing nutrition science, knowledge, and innovation to improve maternal and child health outcomes by increasing access to plant-based whole foods, evidence-based nutrition education, and the resources to ensure sustainable and scalable change for families and future generations.

Contacts:

Abby Szabo, Program Manager – Vitamix Foundation
aszabo@vitamixfoundation.org
216-678-2355