Cardiff City Stadium joins Healthy Stadia Network

The stadium will be formally welcomed into the Healthy Stadia programme at a Healthy Cities launch which took place yesterday (13 January). Compass Group UK and Ireland's Sport, Leisure and Hospitality sector, which has operated the catering contract at Cardiff City stadium since it opened in July 2009, worked closely with the stadium and its Community Foundation team on their application to join the Network and will continue to link the work of the programme with new healthier options for match day public in the stadia and kiosks. This will include providing school children with a piece of fruit and a healthy drink option when visiting the ground. Marc Cahill, assistant manager, Community Foundation, Cardiff City Football Club, said: "After a great deal of hard work I am delighted that we have been invited onto the Healthy Stadia programme. Our stadium is the first Welsh stadium and one of very few in the UK. I would like to thank all the staff who has helped in this process, in particular, Jane Cook from Compass who has worked alongside me from start to finish to make this possible." Jane Cook, general manager, Compass Group, Cardiff City Football Club, added: "We've been working to promote healthy eating messages both to children and young visitors to the stadium, through creating healthy kids meal for under 16s as well as introducing a 'Fresh Fruit Friday' to encourage Cardiff City Stadium employees and visitors to reach their five a day target. "It is a great honour that Cardiff City Stadium's commitment to promoting a healthy lifestyle has been recognised and to be the first Welsh stadium to be accepted into this programme makes us extremely proud."