American Red Cross and Herbalife Partner to Encourage Blood Donations

Admin   |   11 July, 2015   |   659   |   3980

Global nutrition company to provide nutrition bars at blood drives and encourage blood donation from the expected 25,000 attendees at its annual North America member meeting in St. Louis

ST. LOUIS - Today, global nutrition company Herbalife proudly joined the American Red Cross at America's Convention Center/Edward Jones Dome in downtown St. Louis to support efforts to encourage blood donation and announce a new partnership to provide nutritious post-donation snacks to blood and platelet donors. During the summer, blood donations typically decrease across the country while the need for blood donations remains constant, making this partnership especially important.

To kick off this partnership, Herbalife is hosting a two-day blood drive at its North American meeting of more than 25,000 members and employees.

As a small token of Herbalife's gratitude, the company is providing a nutritious Herbalife snack to blood and platelet donors in the refreshment areas at select blood drives and blood donation centers across the country. Health professionals recommend that individuals eat a nutritious meal and hydrate immediately after donating blood and so Herbalife has provided the Red Cross with 280,000 protein bars, which should be available in select locations by September.

"Our mission at Herbalife is to change people's lives and so we proudly partner with the American Red Cross to help them further their noble work," said Michael O. Johnson, chairman and CEO, Herbalife. "Having a nutritious snack after donating blood is important, and we are honored to be the source of that nutrition to blood donors after they give blood."

"We appreciate Herbalife's efforts to help raise awareness about the constant need for blood," said Donna Morrissey, director of National Partnerships, Red Cross Biomedical Services. "The generous donation from Herbalife is a wonderful addition to our blood drives - these nourishing protein bars will be a great way to thank blood donors for rolling up a sleeve to help save lives."

To reach those communities, Herbalife has sponsored a Red Cross blood drive and will launch a grassroots social media fund raising campaign in the fall to support the Red Cross. Herbalife employees and members will also host blood drives and education sessions at select Herbalife facilities.

The partnership announcement between Herbalife and the Red Cross kicks off the company's North America Extravaganza—an annual company convention that draws thousands of Herbalife members from across the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago—to celebrate the achievements of its members and conduct training. This year's Extravaganza brings approximately 25,000 visitors to St. Louis and is expected to have a local economic impact of $18 million through maxed out hotel occupancy levels, tax revenue and other tourism-related activities, according to the St. Louis Convention & Visitors Commission.

About Herbalife:

Herbalife is a global nutrition company that has been changing people's lives with great products since 1980. Our nutrition, weight-management, energy and fitness and personal care products are available exclusively to and through dedicated Independent Herbalife Members in more than 90 countries. We are committed to fighting the worldwide problems of poor nutrition and obesity by offering high-quality products, one-on-one coaching with an Herbalife member and a community that inspires customers to live a healthy, active life.

We support the Herbalife Family Foundation (HFF) and its Casa Herbalife programs to help bring good nutrition to children in need. We also sponsor more than 190 world-class athletes, teams and events around the globe, including Cristiano Ronaldo, the LA Galaxy and champions in many other sports.

The company has over 7,800 employees worldwide, and its shares are traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: HLF) with net sales of $5 billion in 2014. To learn more visit Herbalife.com or IAmHerbalife.com.

Herbalife

Mike Gutierrez, 213-745-0401

michaelgu@herbalife.com