Food historian, Andrew F. Smith, states of the biggest changes that has rippled across the food industry is a loss of cooking skills.  This is despite the popularity of cooking shows and Instagram food photos. This trend is true across age groups.  
There are many benefits of having cooking skills. These benefits include the following: better nutrition because cooking from scratch allows children to see the difference between real food and processed foods. Cooking cuts down on picky eating and develops fine motor skills. Cooking from recipes teaches how to follow directions and practice reading and math skills.
The Mason County Nutrition Education Assistant along with community volunteers offered cooking classes to middle school-aged students during summer break.  The class met every day for three hours a day for two weeks.  The students were in groups of four and prepared tasty healthy versions of everyday foods. For instance, instead of mashed potatoes they made mashed cauliflower and mashed sweet potatoes, etc.

Eighty-two (82%) percent of the students reported making healthier food choices; 50% improved their food safety skills, and 45% increased their ability to prepare simple, nutritious affordable food.
Several students stated that they would have never tried several of the foods prepared if not for the cooking class.