Extension
It Starts With Us
Accessing and consuming nutritious foods
Accessing nutritious foods
Rebecca Miller, Stacy White
Communications and Expressive Arts
Local Food Systems
Food Preparation and Preservation
Nutrition and Food Systems General
Nutrition Education Programs help families and youth gain access to food and stretch food dollars; help 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.
With societal changes and cuts in school budgets, many schools have eliminated family and consumer science labs and no longer include or have decreased FCS or Agriculture instruction in the curriculum. In nutrition alone, the lack of basic life skills is evidenced by alarming rises in childhood obesity, poor diets of youth of all ages, and an over-reliance on packaged/fast food.
Those who seek information often turn to internet sources which may not be based in research. Decision-making may be based on product marketing claims, family tradition, myths, faulty information, and lack of knowledge. Today’s massive health and economic problems are due in part to the lack of instruction in the home by parents and in school through Family and
Consumer Sciences classes.
4-H offers projects in FCS and Agriculture which assist youth in becoming responsible and contributing members of the family and contributing members of Kentucky communities. At the same time, these life skills prepare youth for the families they will establish as adults.
Youth, adults and families will increase average fruit and vegetable consumption by 1 or more servings per day.
Clientele will improve food management skills and healthy eating habits.
Clientele will plant, harvest and preserve produce.
Clientele will apply improved food preparation skills, food management skills, food safety and healthy eating habits.
Clientele will understand the importance of sustainable local agriculture to individual health and financial well-being.
Clientele will learn to grow, prepare and preserve food.
Clientele will increase knowledge and understanding of healthy eating, food safety and food resource management.
Initial Outcome: Clientele will increase knowledge and understanding of healthy eating, food safety and food resource management.
Indicator: Clientele will be able to select healthy foods, understand food safety, discover healthy food sources.
Method: Written or oral evaluation
Timeline: 3-4 months
Intermediate Outcome: Clientele will plant, harvest and preserve produce. Clientele will apply improved food preparation skills, food management skills, food safety and healthy eating habits.
Indicator: Clientele will prepare or preserve food that they have grown and harvested themselves, using research-based Extension materials.
Method: Group discussion, follow-up phone calls
Timeline: 6-12 months
Long-term Outcome: Clientele will improve food management skills and healthy eating habits.
Indicator: A percentage of clientele will successfully access nutritious foods from local food systems and manage a healthier diet, increasing fruit and vegetable consumption.
Method: Farm and home visits, County Fair entries, follow-up phone calls
Timeline: 1-4 years
Audience: Low-income families, youth, adults, seniors
Project or Activity: SNAP-Ed
Content or Curriculum: SNAP-Ed curriculum, Healthy Choices for Every Body
Inputs: SNAP-Ed Assistants, Agents, Cabinet for Health and Families, libraries, non-profit organizations, Family Resource Centers
Date: 2019-2020
Audience: Adults, homemakers, families
Project or Activity: Plate it Up!
Content or Curriculum: Plate it Up! materials/recipes, Kentucky Proud materials
Inputs: Kentucky Proud materials, UK specialists, Agents
Date: 2019-2020
Audience: Adults, Master Gardeners, volunteers
Project or Activity: Community Organic Gardening
Content or Curriculum: UK Publications, UK Specialists, Master Gardeners curriculum
Inputs: Agent
Date: 2019-2020
Audience: Youth and families
Project or Activity: LEAP
Content or Curriculum: LEAP
Inputs: Schools, Family Resource Centers, SNAP-Ed Assistants
Date: 2019-2020
Author: Brian Good
Major Program: Agriculture
Since the late 1990's, the Kentucky 4-H Country Ham Project has been an annual tradition at the Kentucky State Fair. The project began with less than 40 participants. Today, there are nearly 800 entrants from approximately 70 counties. Typically, youth prepare their hams and give a speech to accompany their project. Due to the current pandemic, 4-Her's submitted their hams and wrote an essay in place of the speech. Bell County 4-H had three youth that participated in the project in 2020.
Author: Rebecca Miller
Major Program: Plate It Up! Kentucky Proud
Because of COVID-19 and a nationwide shutdown, more families found themselves staying in and preparing more meals at home. In efforts to educate and help with healthy eating and safe food/meal preparation a series of grab and go lessons and Facebook live videos were developed by the Cooperative Extension Service, University of Kentucky Specialist and the Kentucky Department of Agriculture to implement the Plate It Up Kentucky Proud program.20 participants were given Plate It Up recipe cards and
