Newman’s Own was mildly the brunt of a joke on this weekend’s Saturday Night Live. But the charity-oriented company has never joked about hunger in America, and tomorrow kicks off a “Pay What You Want” Food Truck tour with 100% of proceeds going to Newman’s Own Foundation.
Through October, the food truck will travel the eastern seaboard and southern U.S., offering pizzas, salads, cookies, drinks and even dog treats - all Newman's Own products and all in support of a good cause. As the name implies, customers can choose their price for their meal.
The foundation’s mission is “To nourish and transform the lives of children who face adversity. The foundation continues Paul Newman’s commitment to use all the money that it receives from the sale of Newman’s Own products to support children, their families and their communities.”
Adversity, as the foundation defines it, includes food insecurity, chronic health conditions and poverty among children in America.
About that SNL bit: It came up during the show’s "Weekend Update" segment, when “anchorman” Michael Che asked Bowen Yang, playing a fictitious Chinese trade minister Chen Biao, which country will be hurt more in a trade war. “You can’t live without our technology,” like smartphones and computers, Yang/Biao replied. “We’ll survive without your Newman’s Own Salad Dressing.”
We’ll see about that.
By the way, Newman's Own also kicked off our October 2024 feature "Why Celebrities Start Food Companies," which also featured Harry Hamlin, Jennifer Garner and Lionel Messi.
