Healthy Cooking Class Series 3 to begin 10/4

The East Bay Food Pantry (EBFP) is pleased to announce the third series of Healthy Cooking with Pantry Foods classes beginning on Friday, October 4th at 11:00 am in the Franklin Court Community Room on Wood Street in Bristol. The classes are held once a month through May and are taught by Heidi Hetzler, MS, RD, LDN - Program Coordinator with USDA SNAP-Education Department. Food pantry clients and SNAP recipients are encouraged to call EBFP at (401) 396-9490 to register.

The University of Rhode Island’s SNAP-Ed program (URI SNAP-Ed) is designed to empower participants with limited income to choose nutritious foods and be physically active for better health and well-being through interactive, science-based lessons and activities. SNAP-Ed is funded by the United States Department of Agriculture.

Healthy Cooking with Pantry Foods is a nutrition education program provided by URI SNAP-Ed in conjunction with EBFP’s Access Nutrition Initiative and the Bristol County Elks’ East Bay Cares program. SNAP-Ed began partnering with EBFP in 2011, hosting a table during pantry hours with healthy, low-cost recipes, nutrition information, and food samples. SNAP-Ed interacts with a large number of pantry clients in this way, but contact time with the nutrition educator is limited. Early survey results indicated that many EBFP clients were falling short of a healthy diet—average fruit intake was 0.9 cups daily (compared to recommendation of 2 cups) and vegetable intake was 1.2 cups per day (compared to recommendation of 2 cups).

To tackle this problem, EBFP approached SNAP-Ed about doing a series of nutrition workshops to provide a more detailed, hands-on learning opportunity for the clients. SNAP-Ed developed a series of monthly healthy cooking workshops that focused on 1) utilizing pantry foods in easy, nutritious recipes and 2) eating a healthier diet within a limited budget. Each workshop also addressed a specific nutrition topic related to the day’s recipe—eating more fruits & vegetables on a budget, MyPlate/food groups, calories/portions, homemade vs. convenience foods, fast food/fats, and sugar-sweetened beverages. SNAP-Ed has also added nutrition topics according to clients’ requests. At the end of each workshop, participants receive a recipe booklet, additional nutrition handouts, and a shopping bag with the ingredients needed to prepare the recipe at home, courtesy of the East Bay Cares program.Participants are very engaged during the workshops and ask lots of questions. Almost all participants have reported (via anonymous written surveys) making at least one positive change to their eating habits as a result of the workshops.

The success of the Healthy Cooking with Pantry Foods program lies in the collaboration of three organizations that each offer so much. SNAP-Ed provides the education sessions and cooking demonstrations, EBFP recruits clients and secures space for the workshops, and East Bay Cares provides the ingredients so that clients can try out the recipe at home without spending extra money they may not have in their food budget. In addition, SNAP-Ed is able to encourage clients to choose healthier items from the pantry, such as whole grains, lean meats, fruits, and vegetables, because EBFP consistently stocks these nutritious foods.

Located on the corner of Franklin and Wood in Bristol, the East Bay Food Pantry, Inc. is a 501c (3) non-profit organization, offering a client-choice food pantry and a low-cost thrift shop. The mission of the organization is to engage, educate, and empower the East Bay in creating a hunger-free community. The food pantry serves 5,000 East Bay residents from the towns of Bristol, Warren, Barrington, East Providence, Middletown, Portsmouth, Newport, Tiverton, and Little Compton. The food pantry is open on Wednesdays from 10-5pm. Additional programs include Fresh Food Fridays - providing produce only every Friday 10am-2pm; and Food4Kids – providing low-income children with nutritious food during weekends and school vacations. Located in the same building, the EBFP’s thrift shop is open to the community Wednesday through Friday from 10am – 5pm and Saturdays from 10am-3pm. All proceeds from thrift shop sales support the food pantry.

For more information please contact Anita at 401-396-9490 or arandall@eastbayfoodpantry.org