Success StoryFrom Garden to Plate: Incorporating Homegrown Produce into a MyPlate Meal
From Garden to Plate: Incorporating Homegrown Produce into a MyPlate Meal
Author: Maria Egorenko
Planning Unit: Jefferson County CES
Major Program: Nutrition and Food Systems General
Outcome: Intermediate Outcome
The 2024 Louisville Metro Health Equity Report shows that heart disease is the leading cause of death in Jefferson County; for every 100,000 people, approximately 178.51 individuals die from heart disease. In response to these concerning statistics, the Jefferson County Cooperative Extension Service Nutrition Education Program led an adult group at the Sacred Earth Community Garden to educate community members about healthy eating and lifestyle choices in an effort to combat this issue. The session covered seven core lessons from the Healthy Choices for Every Body curriculum and included an additional supplemental lesson due to participants’ interest in the topic. Participants learned various topics, including food safety, basic nutrition, and healthy eating on a budget. Participants implemented this knowledge with hands-on cooking and learning activities that provided real-life examples. At the end of the sessions, participants gained knowledge of healthy eating, cooking skills, tools, and recipes they could use to continue preparing nutritious food for themselves and their families.
Out of the thirteen participants from the group:
- 92% showed improvement in diet quality through indicators such as eating a variety of fruits and vegetables, cooking at home, and cutting back on sugary beverages.
- 85% of participants improved in one or more resource management skills, such as cooking at home, comparing prices, meal planning, making shopping lists, and checking for ingredients before purchasing.
- Because these participants were also simultaneously learning to garden, they shared their excitement with the instructor about being able to cook and incorporate fruits and vegetables from their garden into the Nutrition Education Program’s recipes.
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