Accessing Nutritious FoodPlan of Work

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Knott County CES

Title:
Accessing Nutritious Food
MAP:
Family Wellness
Agents Involved:
Linda Combs
MAJOR PROGRAM 1:
Plate It Up! Kentucky Proud
MAJOR PROGRAM 2:
Food Preparation
MAJOR PROGRAM 3:
Accessing Nutritious Foods (general)
Situation:

In Knott County 27.5% of children live in poverty. Nutrition Education Programs help families gain access to food and stretch food dollars; communities to decrease hunger; and local food assistance programs to educate recipients on healthy and safe food preparation methods. Agents, paraprofessionals and volunteers are pivotal in influencing policies, systems, and environments and in training consumers and producers to maximize local access to food products from farm to table.

Long-Term Outcomes:

•County population will increase average fruit and vegetable consumption by 1 or more servings per day

•County residents will improve food management skills and healthy eating habits

•Youth will be food secure when school is not in session

•People accessing emergency food sources will select from nutrient dense items

Intermediate Outcomes:

County residents will:

•Access more local foods

•Plant, harvest and preserve produce

•Apply improved food preparation skills, food management skills, food safety and healthy eating habits

•Youth who access other food sources when not in school will be able to find resources.

•Households accessing emergency food sources will decrease.

Initial Outcomes:

County residents will:

•Understand the importance of sustainable local agriculture to individual health and financial well-being

•Learn to grow, prepare and preserve food

•Learn to incorporate unfamiliar foods or foods not currently eaten into a healthy diet

•Increase knowledge and understanding of healthy eating, food safety and food resource management



•Learn about community support services to increase food security

Evaluation:

Initial Outcome: Eat more fruits and vegetables

Indicator: observation, program evaluation tools

Method: pre and post tests, follow up evaluations, observations

Timeline: on-going


Intermediate Outcome: food management skills will improve

Indicator: less use of food banks, healthy eating, food safety is a priority

Method: pre and post tests, follow up evaluation, observation

Timeline: on-going


Long-term Outcome: less obesity and chronic diseases

Indicator: less use of food bank, county data health reports

Method: pre and post tests, evaluation, observation

Timeline: on-going

Learning Opportunities:

Audience: families

Project or Activity:Economical Entrees

Content or Curriculum: UK extension materials

Inputs: Brittany Bowling

Date: Oct 2019


Audience: families

Project or Activity: Meal Kits: Are they worth it?

Content or Curriculum: UK extension materials

Inputs:  Brittany Bowling, Leslie Co FCS

Date: Feb 2020


Audience: Families

Project or Activity: nutrition/food classes

Content or Curriculum: UK extension materials

Inputs: FCS agent

Date: on-going


Audience: families

Project or Activity: food safety/food preservation

Content or Curriculum: UK extension materials

Inputs: FCS agent

Date: on-going



Success Stories

Cooking 101 - the Road to Excellence

Author: Linda Combs

Major Program: Food Preparation

Cooking 101 was developed and implemented at the direction of the Family and Consumer Science (FCS) extension council.  Members of the council discussed that eating at home with the family unit promotes positive relations and the consumption of more nutritious foods.  Cooking 101 began in late fall of 2018 and at the request of participants continues into fall of 2019.  Cooking 101 is a “hands-on” monthly class where participants prepare recipes. The program is a colla

Full Story

Nutrition Education

Author: Linda Combs

Major Program: Accessing Nutritious Foods (general)

During the 2018-2019 program year the Knott County Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program assistants (SNAP assistants) taught 162 limited resource families how to serve more nutritious meals, to keep foods safe, and to utilize local food resources efficiently. Of these 162 families 131 completed the program while 96 are continuing in the program.  66% of graduating families made an improvement in the nutritional quality of their diet. 65% of families demonstrated an improvement in safe f

Full Story

Smarter Lunchroom

Author: Linda Combs

Major Program: Accessing Nutritious Foods (general)

According to the 2018 Annual SNAP-Ed Report for Kentucky, at least one out of 3 Kentucky children are overweight or obese. Nearly half of Kentucky children consume fruits less than once daily, well below the 1½ to 2 cups daily recommended by USDA MyPlate.Children who consume low amounts of fruits and vegetables are at greater risk for many nutrition related health problems. According to the Centers for Disease Control, ”eating a diet rich in fruits and vegetables daily can help redu

Full Story

Gardeners find pland grow kit drive-thru benefits their family

Author: Chadwick Conway

Major Program: Home & Consumer Horticulture

Drive-Thru “Plant and Grow Container Garden Kit" Give-A-WayContinuously looking for ways to support clients' success in raising various crops, the Knott County Extension Agent for Agriculture had to take a different approach this year. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Agent had to get creative in order to meet the guidelines and regulations derived from the current situations. In doing so, the Agent also had to make sure that the needs and wants did not go unnoticed and with an i

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