NRC 2018 Forum - UNPACKING FOOD LITERACY

In this session, attendees will hear from a variety of experts about food literacy initiatives happening in various community settings.
 
What is the role of nutrition standards in food literacy programming? (Brittney Urban)
To prepare for a revision of Region of Waterloo Public Health food literacy programming, dietetic interns analyzed recipes from five Ontario food literacy programs to find a program using recipes meeting nutrition criteria outlined in the “Nutrition Standards for Workplaces.” Various nutrition standards are supported by Public Health; however, many recipes being used in public health programming do not meet these standards. Further discussion is needed on the role of nutrition standards in programming.

Inspiring Collective Community Action: "Lead the Change" Award and Incentive Program
(Nadine Devin & Christine Callaghan)
The Healthy Kids Community Challenge (HKCC) of Middlesex County developed a program coined “Lead the Change” with the objective of inspiring multiple organizations across sectors in the County to collectively create healthier eating environments.  A ‘Lead the Change’ recognition award and incentive program was developed to facilitate this process. This engagement strategy facilitated significant environmental-level change over the duration of The Challenge. Our experience demonstrated that meaningful change can happen when communities are encouraged to collectively adopt healthier environmental practices as part of a larger community-wide effort.

Food Literacy: An Agent for Community Engagement (Ruby Samra)
One of the overarching goals of the Hamilton Food Strategy is to increase food literacy to promote healthy eating and empower all residents. During this session participants will learn about the Hamilton Food literacy Network (HFLN) and Hamilton’s first Food Literacy Month, possibly the first one in Canada. The objective of Hamilton’s Food Literacy Month is to engage residents through the celebration of food as central to both culture and community, and to showcase the food literacy partners’ food inspired events through this collaborative action.