Turbana’s Growing Smiles, Sharing Goodness movement has gained momentum over the last few months. The Coral Gables, FL-based company kicked off the movement in August 2013 on its Facebook and Twitter pages, encouraging individuals to eat healthy, be active and get more involved in their communities.

“We have big plans and are very excited about the movement," said Marion Tabard, Turbana’s marketing director. "This is just the beginning. Turbana is already discussing partnerships with other brands and retailers that share our mission to inspire.”

The Tally Me Turbana Truck Tour went to the Marine Corps Marathon, where runners were greeted with 43,000 Turbana bananas. Turbana combined inspiring content with the motivational hashtags #LoveYourselfABunch and #LoveYouBunches to build awareness and excitement for the movement within their social media community.

“We are very excited about the movement," said a Turbana social media representative. "We have already seen a 10 percent increase in the number of people using the hashtag #LoveYouBunches across Twitter and Facebook.”

On Oct. 9, Turbana launched its Northeast Tally Me Turbana Food Truck Tour, which aimed to tally communities into the Growing Smiles, Sharing Goodness movement. The Tally Me Turbana Truck visited nine cities — Boston, Needham, MA, Baltimore, Washington, DC, Hartford CT, Philadelphia, New York, Newark, NJ, and Arlington, VA — in 19 days and engaged with over 500,000 individuals.

“The Growing Smiles, Sharing Goodness movement is about lifestyle," said Tabard. "It’s about little choices that compound, and with time those choices make a difference to you as an individual, and to our communities as a whole. We aim to inspire people and we want everyone to feel empowered by the small choices they make to better themselves and the communities around them.”

Events at each stop during the truck tour focused on that specific community. One of the first stops was at Boston’s Light the Night Walk, which raised funds for blood cancer research. The Growing Smiles, Sharing Goodness team distributed over 5,000 Turbana bananas, 7,500 Turbana Plantain chips and exchanged thousands of smiles. The team walked “To the End of Cancer” and talked to survivors about what inspires them.

“It was 32 degrees and they we here with their big yellow happy face truck and all smiles,” said a Light the Night participant.

After stops in New York City’s Times Square and Union Square, followed by Philadelphia, the Tally Me Turbana Truck Tour wrapped up with the Marine Corps Marathon in Arlington, where runners were greeted with hugs, high-fives, smiles and 43,000 Turbana bananas. Turbana also partnered with the Marine Corps Marathon and Arlington’s waste management, initiating the event’s first on-site composting program.

“Turbana approached the MCM with innovative ideas to enhance the experience of the participants," said Marc Goldman, Marine Corps Marathon marketing manager. "The composting program that Turbana initiated really resonated with the participants as smart and responsible. The MCM looks forward to building on this great start in 2014."

Since 1970, when Turbana was founded, its philosophy has been that its success depends on the well being of its communities. The movement invites others to share in those ideals.

“Over the last two months our social networks have seen significant growth," said Turbana’s social media team. "Our Facebook engagement has increased by 4,433 percent and our Reach has grown 18,500 percent. It is exciting to see so many people participating so early on.”

To join the “Growing Smiles, Sharing Goodness” movement, tally yourself in at  or contact Tabard for brand and retailer partnership inquires.