Success StoryInternational Center



International Center

Author: Nan Montgomery

Planning Unit: Allen County CES

Major Program: Accessing Nutritious Foods (general)

Outcome: Long-Term Outcome

The SNAP Education Assistant in Warren County conducted a food and nutrition series for Somalian, Swahili and Burmese refugees. The focus was to introduce them to Kentucky produce and how to make healthy choices. Many were relying on fast food and incurring health problems. The goal of Nutrition Education Program was to teach them how to prepare, cook and store fresh produce safely. There were seven lessons taught with a cooking component to each lesson.

            Fifty percent of the adults learned to plan meals in advance. While eighty percent of adults ran out of food less during the month. One-hundred percent of the adults started to use a grocery list when shopping to save money at the grocery store. Eighty percent of the families thought about feeding their families healthy choices over empty calories meals. Furthermore, ninety percent of participants showed improvement in thawing and storing food correctly.