Community
NUTRITION
At Second Harvest Food Bank, we're concerned with more than just how much food we can provide. The nutritional value of that food matters, too. We strive to prioritize fruits, vegetables, and nutrition education in all of our efforts.
Community
NUTRITION PROGRAM
As we strive to increase accessibility to fresh produce, lean proteins, and fresh foods, we understand that there may be some items that not all of our neighbors are familiar with. Our Community Nutrition program brings demonstrations and nutrition classes to schools, after-school programs, community groups, and food pantries. Through these hands-on classes and demonstrations, we can provide recipes, preparation tips, and ideas to make the most of the food we provide. Educating our community about healthy eating habits allows for a higher probability of self-sufficiency and greater food security.
Healthy Pantry Initiative
We are collaborating with The Pennsylvania Department of Health and Feeding Pennsylvania to bring the Pennsylvania Healthy Pantry Initiative (PA HPI) to pantries in our network.
Food insecure individuals who regularly shop at food pantries are at a high risk for diet-related chronic diseases due to their food environment and lack of access to a variety of foods. The goal of PA HPI is to increase access to healthy foods and chronic disease information for neighbors shopping at food pantries. The initiative also aims to support neighbors in increasing their consumption of healthy foods by highlighting healthy choices within the food pantries.
Components of PA HPI include:
- Support from a nutrition educator
- Materials for promoting healthy items (such as shelf signage, recipe cards, food display, and storage materials)
- Healthy recipe tastings and cooking demonstrations
- Nutrition education classes
The long-term goal is to reduce the burden of chronic disease and increase the quality of life for neighbors who use food support systems.
Interested in Healthy Pantry Recipes?
Follow this link:
https://www.feedingpa.org/pa-healthy-pantry-initiative/recipes/
For more information, please contact:
Kim Slack, RD – Healthy Pantry Coordinator
Phone: 484-821-2413
Email: kslack@caclv.org
Growing Partners
Community
NUTRITION PROGRAM
Our Growing Partners raised bed program operates within The Seed Farm and aims to increase access to nutritious, fresh food for neighbors in need. This program provides educational opportunities for residents to grow food and gain gardening confidence, breaking barriers to food equity in the Lehigh Valley and increasing accessibility to growing vegetables. The Seed Farm itself increases access to fresh, nutrient-dense produce by growing thousands of pounds of vegetables directly for the emergency food system.
