Author: Martha Yount
Planning Unit: Family and Consumer Sciences
Major Program: Cook Wild Kentucky
Outcome: Intermediate Outcome
Cook Wild Kentucky began to connect Kentucky’s natural bounty with those Kentuckians experiencing food insecurity. Feeding Kentucky and Hunters for the Hungry already had a path for accessing and distributing venison through Kentucky Food Banks. The missing piece was access to simple and healthy recipes to go along with the wild proteins. In October 2019, after months of behind the scenes work, FCS Extension and the Kentucky Nutrition Education Program used their skills in recipe development along with the experts at the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife to produce the first 17 recipe cards featuring Kentucky wild game and fish. The recipes met the nutritional standards of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans and featured venison, fish, rabbit, turkey, elk, and turtle. 7 additional cards were published in 2020, and 10 more are in development in 2021, featuring additional wild proteins such as squirrel, trout, crappie, beaver, and racoon. The cards were made available at food pantries and County Extension Office across the state. Even though in-person education was impacted by the pandemic, the Kentucky Nutrition Education Program continued to offer classes and food demonstrations with Cook Wild Kentucky materials via virtual platforms. 7 virtual trainings were offered to Cooperative Extension agents and assistants during the 2020-2021 program year, who in turn shared information about Cook Wild Kentucky with their clients through Zoom, FaceBook Live, and other platforms. Modified in-person trainings in partnership with 4-H and the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife provided Youth Development agents with skills to share at 4-H camp. Even though limited resource Kentuckians were the target audience for these materials, Cook Wild Kentucky turned out to be popular with many Kentuckians, not just those experiencing food insecurity. According to an internal publication from the Kentucky Nutrition Education Program, 2108 deer, or 85,767 pounds of venison, has been donated to Kentucky Food Banks thus far.
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