Nutritious Foods to Alleviate the Burdens of Food Insecurity
The LCFB believes that greater access to nutritious food can help break the cycle of hunger and alleviate the burdens of food insecurity. In 2020, the Lowcountry Food Bank officially adopted a Nutrition Policy. The Policy guides organizational decisions and stewards donations that support the well-being of the community. By committing to purchase foods low in sugar, sodium, and saturated fat when they are available, the LCFB provides our agency partners and their clients with nutritious food, which can enrich their health and help alleviate some burdens of chronic disease; all of which can help break the cycle of food insecurity. Foods that do not add nutritional value to the community we serve will be reduced by focusing on procuring more nutrient-dense fruits, vegetables, protein, grains, and dairy. Click here for the executive summary.
Education to Address the Root Causes of Hunger
The Nutrition Education team provides training and materials to empower individuals to prepare delicious, nourishing meals. As a SNAP Education Implementing Agency, Lowcountry Food Bank provides our partners with training, materials, and guidance on how to empower our community to make the best food choices for the budget. Making the most of food resources is a key part of addressing the root causes of hunger. Review our Nutrition Annual Report to learn all that we accomplished with our partners in 2019.
Cooking Courses
Lowcountry Food Bank offers six-week Cooking Matters courses to adults, kids and families. Each course is team-taught by a volunteer culinary instructor, nutrition educator, and assistant. The courses cover meal preparation, grocery shopping, food budgeting and MyPlate nutrition guidelines. Upon graduation, participants receive incentives that help them continue to learn and practice their skills. We partner with Share Our Strength to bring this evidence-based curricula to our partners.
Grocery Store Tours
Cooking Matters at the Store tours are led by trained volunteers providing families with hands-on education as they shop for food. Participants learn unit pricing, label reading, identifying whole grains and comparing foods to build healthy meals on a budget. We partner with Share Our Strength to bring this evidence-based curricula to our partners.
Partner Agency Nutrition Education
Lowcountry Food Bank provides training for agency leaders to learn how to create healthy pantries, pack healthy food assistance boxes, and offer nutrition education during their distributions.
Recipes
The Nutrition Education team shares delicious recipes for commonly available items at Lowcountry Food Bank. These recipes are simple to prepare and meet specific nutrition guidelines for a healthy life. Check out our favorite recipes!
Outreach Events
Nutrition Team Volunteers share nutrition activities and recipe samplings with clients at our partners’ community events. At key events, the Charlie Cart, a full scale portable kitchen, enables us to provide safe, interactive sampling, engaging participants in learning new ways to prepare foods.
Interested in bringing Nutrition Education to your agency? Please complete the request form.