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Let's forever end hunger & malnourishment. We can do this.

The Meera and Ashok Vasudevan Foundation (MAVF)

Who We Are:

MAVF is a fully funded initiative by Meera & Ashok Vasudevan, co-founders of Preferred Brands International, a Connecticut based food company that manufactures and markets TastyBite® and other natural & organic foods whose products are sold in several countries including the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, UK, Japan and India.

Our Mission:

MAVF is dedicated to the idea that it is possible to permanently move people out of hunger and malnourishment in a manner that is sustainable, self-reliant and healthy.

Our Approach:

We will provide grants, collaborate with and support an ecosystem of grassroots organizations, non-profits, research institutions, think tanks, independent scholars, artists, and social entrepreneurs who are aligned with our mission.

Meera and Ashok Vasudevan on the problem of Hunger & malnourishment in the US and an introduction to the MAV Foundation.

Tweets by mav_foundation

We are both honored and humbled to be the recipients of the 2017 Alliance to End Hunger Partnership Award presented to us by Bread for the World and The Alliance to End Hunger.

What We’re Reading:

Are grocery cards a better approach than food banks in solving food insecurity?
Via HomelessHub

Three Focus Areas

1. Grassroots Support

Green the Pantry: Ensure availability of fresh produce in all food pantries across America. This will have an immediate and lasting effect on the health of all visitors

Remove the Stigma: Help create a fresh market image and eliminate the embarrassment of visiting a pantry.

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2. Hunger Collaborative

Work with Experts: We envision the collaborative to represent the entire food ecosystem including farmers markets, food companies, groceries, technology providers, food banks & pantries, food rescue organizations, local, state and national policy advocates. This will allow us to pool resources

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3. Research Grants

Build a Think Tank: Provide Grants to researchers to gain insights and enable synthesis of data, information and analysis on the issues of hunger and malnutrition

Develop a Toolkit: Create a set of metrics or measurement tools to evaluate program effectiveness and help scale across projects and regions

Learn More

Recently Published (View All Posts)

Articles & Research

More Than Half of What Americans Eat Is ‘Ultra-Processed

Michael Pollan’s guideline that people should “eat food, not too much, mostly plants,” is oft-quoted, less oft-followed. Once again, research ...
/ Articles & Research
#GiveHealthyArticles & ResearchChildhood

hungry caterpillar

Going to work recently, I noticed a poster hanging by our local theater announcing an upcoming showing of The Very Hungry Caterpillar ...
/ #GiveHealthy, Articles & Research, Childhood
Articles & Researchcommunityengagement

MAV Co-Founder Speaks on Corporate Giving

Creating a corporate culture of philanthropy and community service requires much more than sending out a memo or writing a ...
/ Articles & Research, community, engagement
Articles & ResearchChildhood hunger

The Longest Day of the Year

SUMMERTIME, AND THE LIVING SHOULD BE EASY It’s summer, and students around the country are eagerly awaiting the final day ...
/ Articles & Research, Childhood hunger

About Ashok

Ashok Vasudevan is Co-founder & CEO of Preferred Brands International, a Connecticut-based food company that makes Tasty Bite and a range of other natural, ethnic and specialty foods sold in major supermarkets globally.

Prior to Tasty Bite, Ashok headed the India desk of Pepsi World Trade in Somers, New York. He received Pepsi’s prestigious MVP award in 1991.

Before joining Pepsi, Ashok spent 10 years with Unilever in various functions that included Management Development, Sales & Marketing and International Business

He is involved in several non-profit organizations in India and the US including:

  • Director on the Board of The Fairfield County Business Council
  • Member of the Chairman’s Circle of the US-India Business Council,
  • Distinguished Visiting Professor of International Entrepreneurship and a member of the Business
    advisory Council of Great Lakes Institute of Management in Chennai, India.
    Ashok Vasudevan graduated in Agricultural Sciences from Bangalore, and post graduate degrees at Bajaj Institute of Management in Bombay and the Harvard Business School.

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About Meera

Meera Vasudevan is Co-founder of Preferred Brands International, a Connecticut-based food company that makes Tasty Bite, a range of natural, ethnic food sold in major supermarkets around the world.

Meera also co-founded ASG-Omni a US and India based consulting firm involved in the design and execution of entry strategies for large US corporations looking to do business in India.

Meera began her career in market research at MARG (Marketing & Research Group), India. MARG is now part of the Nielsen group. After nearly a decade there, Meera co-founded India’s first specialist and largest qualitative research firm, Quantum Market Research. She worked on a number of entry strategies for global brands looking to enter the Indian market and on national social research projects for UNICEF.

She has served on some non-profit boards in the US, and is currently on the board of the United Way of Western Connecticut.

Meera has a Bachelors in English with post-graduate qualifications in Marketing from the University of Madras and INSEAD, France.

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