Media Release

Mr Tan Chuan-Jin, Speaker of Parliament and Member of Parliament for Marine Parade GRC, (2nd from right) Ms Jackie Chew, Chief Risk Officer, Prudential Singapore, (2nd from left) Mdm Rahayu Buang, CEO, KidSTART Singapore, with KidSTART beneficiaries, (4th from left) Ms Coco Tan and her child, and (3rd from right) Ms Noor Farra binte Mohamed Noor and her child. Also in the photo are (3rd from left) Ms Tan Ping Ping, Head of Corporate Affairs, Prudential Singapore, (1st from left) Mr Mazlan Boyamin, a chef who features in the “What’s for Lunch?” series, and (1st from right) Ms Huda Ali, “What’s for Lunch?” host and TV personality.

Mr Tan Chuan-Jin, Speaker of Parliament and Member of Parliament for Marine Parade GRC, Ms Jackie Chew, Chief Risk Officer at Prudential Singapore, and Mdm Rahayu Buang, CEO at KidSTART Singapore, hosted a community luncheon for 10 KidSTART families who had benefitted from the “What’s for Lunch?” cooking series in 2022. The event also marked the start of “What’s for Lunch?” 2023 at Prudential Singapore’s (“Prudential”) Marina One office on 5 March 2023.

Prudential launched “What’s for Lunch?” in 2022 as a pilot three-part series to educate KidSTART families on how to cook and eat more healthily, as an extension of the Healthy with KidSTART programme. This is in line with Prudential’s purpose to help people get the most out of life, including people in our community. One of our focus areas is in promoting early childhood care and development through Healthy with KidSTART.

A balanced and nutritious diet is important for our overall health and well-being, and is a key part of Singapore’s Healthier SG strategy to help all Singaporeans take steps towards better health. Cultivating healthy eating habits from young is important in ensuring that children receive the essential nutrients to support their growth and development. Family meals contribute the most in shaping children's eating habits, so engaging parents is important.

At the luncheon, the KidSTART families had a healthy meal which included a signature dish – Korean Honey Baked Chicken – by chef Mazlan Boyamin who features in the “What’s for Lunch?” series. The families also enjoyed activities at a Kids Play area along with sculpted balloons and a photo booth. Each family also received a toy cooking set to motivate parents to bond and explore preparing healthy meals with their children.

About “What’s for Lunch?” series

The “What’s for Lunch?” series showcased recipes for local dishes such as Ayam Masak Merah (chicken in spicy tomato sauce) and cucumber raita being prepared in a healthier manner with less salt, oil, and sugar.

The cooking workshops demonstrated that healthy and nutritious meals can be simple and affordable to make. The episodes were streamed live to a select group of about 50 families who had received the ingredients and cooking instructions in advance, which allowed them to cook along during the livestream. The episodes were later made available on demand for all KidSTART families and was also in the Ministry of Social and Family Development’s ‘Year of Celebrating SG Families’ initiative, a movement that encourages people, public and private sectors to celebrate families and nurture a family-friendly ecosystem.

The feedback from families who participated in the “What’s for Lunch?” post-episode surveys showed that across all three episodes in 2022, at least 94 per cent of attendees agreed that they had learnt how to make simple, affordable and nutritious dishes, while at least 90 per cent were encouraged to cook the healthy dishes shared during the workshop. Following this positive reception to the pilot, Prudential will be continuing its “What’s for Lunch?” programme in 2023.

About Healthy with KidSTART

Healthy with KidSTART is an early childhood nutrition programme launched in 2020, and is a collaboration between KidSTART Singapore (KidSTART) and Prudential. It is aimed at promoting healthy eating habits among children aged 0-6 years old, as good nutrition during this stage is crucial to their development. Through the programme, parents receive monthly deliveries of fresh fruits and vegetables. About 80 per cent of the 129 respondents surveyed said that the fresh produce packs enabled their children to eat healthier.

KidSTART families also have access to curated health education resources for guidance on preparing healthy meals, for example, through “What’s for Lunch?”

Prudential’s employees and financial consultants participate actively in the packing and distribution of fresh produce to the families on the Healthy with KidSTART programme. Prudential funded the procurement and delivery of fresh produce packs for 1,100 families in 2022. Through these efforts, we aim to bridge the health gap in our community and support young children and their families in taking charge of their health.

Quotes

Mr Tan Chuan-Jin, Speaker of Parliament and Member of Parliament for Marine Parade GRC said: “The Healthy with KidSTART and What’s for Lunch? initiatives are meaningful efforts to encourage our families not to compromise on good nutrition for the children. It is a good way to spread awareness that there are easy ways to ensure our children eat healthy with simple dishes that we can easily make at home. I am happy that these initiatives are receiving good support from our KidSTART families and I look forward to greater support from partners like Prudential as KidSTART scales up to help even more families.”

Ms Jackie Chew, Chief Risk Officer, Prudential Singapore said: “Prudential is stepping up efforts to support KidSTART families through the ‘What’s for Lunch?’ cooking series. Healthy eating begins at home, and children need nutritious meals so that they can grow well and get a good start in life. In addition to providing families with fresh produce, it is also crucial to equip them with the knowledge to prepare healthy meals. This will help us build a stronger and healthier community in Singapore.”

Mdm Rahayu Buang, Chief Executive Officer, KidSTART Singapore said: “The ‘What’s for Lunch?’ series is an effort to engage our families and help them discover that good nutrition is not difficult to include in their lives. Prudential’s Healthy with KidSTART initiative guides our families on simple ways to prepare healthy meals for their children and families also receive fresh and healthy ingredients as options for their meals. We are happy to hear that our families enjoy trying out the dishes and take pride in what they prepare. We receive many photos of the dishes made at home and some of them look like dishes served at a restaurant. This helps in promoting healthy eating habits in the family and especially the young children. KidSTART is grateful for Prudential’s partnership to continue exploring new ways to engage and support the families under this initiative.”

Quote from Beneficiary 1 – Ms Tan Ker, Coco (21 years old)
Coco has a son, Tan Yun Xi Lucien, aged 2 years old, who has been part of the KidSTART programme since March 2022.

Coco Tan, Healthy with KidSTART beneficiary said: “I do not have much experience cooking, but the ‘What’s For Lunch?’ workshops taught me how to make easy and healthy meals that my family loves. I am now also more confident to improvise the meals by adding other healthy ingredients like tofu.”

Quote from Beneficiary 2 – Ms Noor Farra binte Mohamed Noor (25 years old)
Noor Farra is the mother of Zarril Adrian bin Norharian, aged 4 years old who joined the KidSTART programme in January 2022.

Noor Farra binte Mohamed Noor, Healthy with KidSTART beneficiary said: “The ‘What’s for Lunch?’ workshops taught me simple meals which I can prepare with my son. Getting him involved by peeling vegetables or cracking eggs is a fun activity we now do together and it motivates him to eat the nutritious food he prepared.”