Kellogg's Rice Krispies Now Offers Braille Stickers So Parents Can Send Love Notes to Blind Children

It’s easy for those without visual impairments to overlook the simple things that make everyday life inaccessible for those who can’t see. Kellogg’s new Rice Krispies initiative aims to break down at least one simple barrier — parents can now share the treat’s love notes with children who are blind or have low vision.

Rice Krispies previously released a wrapper with a white space for parents to write encouraging notes to their children. To make these notes more inclusive, Kellogg’s partnered with the National Federation of the Blind to create accessible Love Notes with braille stickers and re-recordable audio boxes.

The heart-shaped braille stickers can be placed directly on the wrapper’s packaging. Parents can choose from eight different messages including “You’ve got this,” “You’re a star” and “Love you lots.” The audio box fits a single Rice Krispies treat. Once opened, the box plays a 10-second message that can be re-recorded up to 1,000 times.

Kellogg’s Rice Krispies Love Notes campaign features Eme Butler-Mitchell, an 11-year-old musician who is blind, and her mother, Tabatha Mitchell. Butler-Mitchell is one of more than 62,000 students in the U.S. who live with a visual impairment. 

“We are extremely honored to have the opportunity to promote inclusion on such a large stage,” Mitchell told The Mighty. “Parents of blind kids struggle with day-to-day things that simply are not designed for blind kids. Creativity is a necessity for parents of blind kids as we identify and map ways for others to modify what they’re doing in a way that makes it more inclusive for our blind kids.”

For Kellogg’s, inspiration for its inclusive Love Notes comes from a source close to home — the company’s founder.

“Kellogg as a whole has a larger connection to this cause with W.K. Kellogg having lost his sight for the last decade of his life,” Jessica Waller, vice president of sales and co-chair of Kapable Business/Employee Resource Group at Kellogg, said in a press release. “Inclusion is in our DNA, and is now shared through Rice Krispies Treats ‘Love Notes.’ Everyone is important, and we want each child to be able to feel loved, supported and acknowledged.”

The National Federation of the Blind said it hopes its partnership with Kellogg’s increases the inclusion of blind and low vision students in everyday life moments as well as encourages other companies to create more accessible product packaging.

“We strive for the inclusion of blind people in all aspects of life, including something as simple as receiving a note from mom or dad in your lunch box,” Christopher S. Danielsen, National Federation of the Blind director of public relations, told The Mighty. “It is our hope that this partnership will spark interest, among other things, in the creation of accessible product packaging, including braille information on mainstream food, medical, household and other products.”

Those interested in receiving Rice Krispies Love Notes braille stickers and recordable audio boxes can order them for free via Kellogg’s website. Orders are limited to one per household.