One day a week, cut out the meat. This is the slogan of the Meatless Monday's. Meatless Monday's are one of the ways to help K-12 schools' diets become more sustainable and healthy. Since the movement's conception back in 2003, famous supporters like Oprah Winfrey, Paul McCartney, and Ellen DeGeneres, have taken part to help bring awareness and various restaurants and organizations have jumped onboard as well. Through the years Meatless Mondays has become an international movement and schools across the United States have been implementing this movement along with the guidelines for the USDA’s National School Lunch Program. This free online cookbook gives 30 recipes on various tasty meatless options to start a Meatless Monday movement in any school. To find more ...
The local farmers' market in Tyler, TX is expanding! The 21% Latino east Texas town now has 2 farmers' markets, one on Tuesdays and another on Saturdays, both from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. The Rose City Farmers' Market was started by Tyler's Food and Farm Coalition. The market’s director, Carmen Sosa, has been working to connect farmers to the community to not only stimulate the farming economy but also to offer fresh, local food. Many residents in the area don't have easy access to grocery stores, limiting their healthy food options. But farmers' markets are a viable alternative. According to an article in the Tyler Morning Telegraph, the market accepts SNAP benefit cards and participates in the Texas Department of Agriculture’s Farmers Market Nutrition Program, which gives $30 ...
Healthy eating involves knowing what to eat, and when to eat it. When a certain food is more available to eat, it is easier to find in local farmers markets.
Knowing where to find the best and most available food is sometimes a difficult task, unless you have this handy little tool. Just put in your state, and what season (month) you are in to get the local grown foods that are most abundant in this season. Get your local greens, corn and squash in the closest farmer's market. Make sure to buy what is in season, as these fruits and vegetables are freshest, most nutritious, and less expensive then out-of-season ...
When Latino kids choose to eat more fresh fruits and vegetables and less soda and chips, they set a good example for friends and family. But what if they can’t maintain their healthy lifestyle at school? Read what happens when youth leaders work with their school board to get healthy, vegan and vegetarian-approved lunch items into their cafeteria, not only to satisfy their desire to eat healthy but to empower other students to make healthier choices.
EMERGENCE
Awareness/Learn: For Sandra Garcia, it took planting a garden to realize just how powerful healthy food can be, not only for a community, but for a culture. “When SWU [Southwest Workers’ Union] started the Roots of Change Garden in 2007, I realized how beautiful it was to grow your own naturally organic food,” said ...
The FDA has given food manufacturing companies 3 years to comply with a new ban on partially hydrogenated oils, also known as trans fat. Trans fat is found in baked, fried and processed food and is associated with heart disease. It has been used for decades because it is cheaper and lasts longer than animal-based fats. However, reduced cost means increased consumption in many low-income and minority populations. Latinos are not only faced with increased marketing for cheaper processed foods, but they are also burdened with increased risk factors for heart disease, such as obesity, diabetes and physical inactivity. The FDA estimates that removing trans fats will help prevent up to 20,000 heart attacks and 7,000 deaths each year. Dr. Golomb said, “as I tell patients, while ...
SNAP 2 it! is copying similar programs from around the country, where recipients of the the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, can get each dollar spent on these fresh foods matched. A recent article, talks about the local farmer's markets involved in the program: Schlafly’s Bottleworks, Webster Groves Farmers Market, Cherokee Street Farmers Market, International Institute of St. Louis Global Farms, North City Farmers Market, and Tower Grove Farmers Market, as well as the Earth Dance booth at the Ferguson Farmers Market. By making the food more affordable and multiplying the dollar-for-dollar model, they hope to bring in a more diverse population for customers using EBT and other similar payment ...
WIC, Texas Agriculture Department and The Food Bank-RVG, are teaming up to make fresh farmers' market foods available to local Latino moms. The local valley news has stated that the Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program and has been successfully engaging WIC clients and changing their eating habits. “I love the idea of being able to get freshly picked vegetables with these vouchers,” Maria Calvo, a WIC participant from Raymondville, said. “It’s important for my children to eat healthy at a young age.” To see all the states where this program is active, check out the WIC Farmers' Market Program. The active Farmers' Markets in the valley are: Pharrmers Market, at the Food Bank RGV, Weslaco, McAllen Farmers Market at the McAllen Public Library, and Brownsville Farmers ...
Some say the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act passed in 2010 hasn't been effective, but data from USDA and academics show that most schools across the country are actually serving healthier food and kids are eating it. This is good news for Latino students, who are more likely to eat school-provided lunch than their White peers. Since the Act, school lunches have gotten makeovers across the country. These days, 95% of school districts are serving healthier school lunches. School lunches are not only healthier, but are looking and tasting better than ever in most schools. Yet, some law makers want to roll back these healthy standards. Congress will debate whether to re-authorize the law this year. If you support the new school food standards, the American Heart Association has a ...
Farmers' markets are a great place to buy fresh, often locally-grown healthy produce. However, farmers' markets sometimes have a reputation for being pricey and not welcoming to low-income folks. Programs across the country are changing this by allowing SNAP participants to use their food benefits at markets and some markets are gaining the capability to double SNAP participants' dollars when they buy fresh, healthy produce. The Montclair Farmers' Market in New Jersey is the latest market to offer better access to healthy foods. In addition to accepting SNAP payments through the area agencies Partners for Health and City Green, the market will match all purchases made with the supplemental food programs via its "Double Bucks" initiative up to $10, meaning that an individual ...
