Uncle Ben's, in partnership with the Columbia Bethlehem Community Center, Harvest Hope Food Bank and Feeding America, has opened its newest Kids Cafe at the Kathryn M. Bellfield-Booker Washington Heights Cultural Arts Center in Columbia, S.C. The program provides free meals and snacks to some of the 12 million children in the United States who are hungry or at risk of going hungry. This is the 16th location that Uncle Ben's has opened since September 2007. The first-ever Kids Cafe opened in Greenville, Miss., the home of Uncle Ben's U.S. rice plant.

"In 2007 we joined with Feeding America, pledging funds to establish Uncle Ben’s-sponsored Kids Cafe locations in safe places where kids congregate after-school and are proud of what has been accomplished in a short time," said Bryan Crowley, vice president of marketing for Mars Inc., the makers Uncle Ben's, in a statement. "The Kids Cafe in Columbia is one of seven cafes Uncle Ben’s will open this year and at this location alone, more than 50 local kids have the opportunity to eat healthier and live happier every day."