Progress 07/01/10 to 06/30/11
Outputs
OUTPUTS: During the grant period, City Harvest's nutrition education courses targeted 456 low-income seniors, adults, and children through 26 courses administered in the South Bronx. In addition, we established one cooking club for seniors, provided healthy snacks and nutrition lessons to kids at 16 childcare sites through our Fruit Bowl program, and conducted 28 cooking demonstrations throughout the community. Cooking Demonstrations: are conducted at our Mobile Markets and participating farmer's markets, corner stores / bodegas and other community based programs to increase awareness of healthy foods and provide residents with basic recipes to prepare affordable, nutritious meals. City Harvest administered 28 cooking demonstrations in the South Bronx last year: 14 at the Melrose Mobile Market and 14 supported produce sales at New York City GreenCarts, the Harvest Home Farmers' market, and Echo Park. Cooking Matters (formerly Operation Frontline) - City Harvest administered 12 Cooking Matters courses reaching 96 participants, including: 1) Cooking Matters for Adults - teaches low‐income adults how to prepare and shop for healthy meals on a limited budget; 2) Cooking Matters for Families - teaches school‐age children and their parents about healthy eating and working together to plan and prepare healthy meals on a budget; 3) Cooking Matters for Kids - engages kids ages 8 to 12 in learning about healthy eating and provides simple nutritious recipes that children can prepare themselves; and 4) Cooking Matters for Teens - teaches teens how to make healthy food choices, meals and snacks for themselves, their families and friends. Fruit Bowl: Through partnerships with Head Start, preschool, and afterschool programs we provide children with fresh fruit and dairy along with nutrition education to encourage lifelong healthy eating habits. As of June 30, 2011, 16 Fruit Bowl sites are established in the South Bronx providing fruit and nutrition education to 1,028 children. Fruit Bowl Family Curriculum: Invites parents and caregivers to cook side by side with their children to ensure that nutrition lessons are reinforced at home. Five courses were administered reaching 54 participants. Produce Education Program: teaches individuals and families how to incorporate fresh fruits and vegetables into their daily diets. Five PEP courses serving 108 participants were held during the grant period. Well Seasoned: is an eight-week program designed to help low‐income seniors improve their diets, health, and socialize around a healthy activity. Three senior centers at New York City Housing Authority sites in the South Bronx participated in the program. In addition to the classes, City Harvest provided support for the creation and implementation a Cooking Club for class graduates. The Cooking Club is run by the Sedwick Senior Center and has 16 participants. Four Well Seasoned courses were held in the South Bronx with 37 participants. PARTICIPANTS: City Harvest maintains the philosophy that community engagement is crucial to program success. As such, we partner with a wide variety of local organizations and train local staff to carry on nutrition education programming. By developing partnerships with schools, city agencies, and nonprofits we can serve larger populations more efficiently. The incorporation of a Train the Trainer model has greatly expanded our impact and efficiency. Training other organizations to conduct City Harvest nutrition curricula builds the capacity of our partners, providing them with a new service to offer their clients. In addition, this model allows our staff to more effectively utilize their time as they provide training and oversight to individuals conducting classes rather than teaching all of the courses themselves. By alleviating some of the demands on their time, staff can devote more time and energy to critical efforts including partner recruitment, program development, and evaluation. During the grant period City Harvest conducted nine nutrition education facilitator training in the South Bronx reaching 105 attendees. Some of our South Bronx community partners and their nutrition education course offerings include: New York City Green Carts - An initiative of the City where mobile food carts offer fresh produce in certain New York City areas. City Harvest conducted cooking demonstrations near the Green Carts to encourage sales of fresh produce in the South Bronx. New York City Housing Authority sites offering Well Seasoned - High Bridge Senior Center - Morrisania Air Rights Senior Center - Sedgwick Senior Center Public School 385 - Cooking Matters for Families Community Action for Human Services - Cooking Matters for Adults Davidson Community Center - Fruit Bowl family Curriculum Give Them to Eat (food pantry and soup kitchen) - Produce Education Program Living Better Community Center - Produce Education Program Part of the Solution - Produce Education Program Public School 140 - Cooking Matters for Families Public School 306 - Cooking Matters for Families Public School 385 - Cooking Matters for Families Public School 53 - Cooking Matters for Families Public School 65 - Cooking Matters for Families McKinley Community Center - Family Curriculum The Edith MaGuire Residence - Cooking Matters for Adults The Mohegan School/ CS 67/Urban Assembly School for Wildlife Conservation - Cooking Matters for Families Way Out Ministries - Produce Education Program Word of Life - Family Curriculum TARGET AUDIENCES: Poverty rates in the South Bronx near 40 percent and a family of three now needs to earn $60,934 to be considered self-sufficient - an increase of 38 percent in the cost of living since 1990. Complicating the struggle to make ends meet is the research that increasingly shows that the foods we eat and the neighborhoods we live in have a dramatic impact on personal and family health. The connection between hunger and diet-related diseases is readily apparent in the South Bronx. Nearly 70 percent of residents are overweight or obese and 17 percent suffer from diabetes. A March 2011 report confirmed that the 16th Congressional District in the South Bronx is the most food insecure in the entire country, with 33 percent of residents reporting that they couldn't afford enough food. City Harvest's multi-week nutrition interventions in the South Bronx are targeted to low-income children, families, and seniors. To reach and increasing number of South Bronx residents, we began to identify new umbrella partners that have the capacity to operate on a larger scale. By developing partnerships with schools, city agencies, and nonprofits like the Wellness in the Schools, we can serve larger populations more efficiently. For instance, by training an agency that operates a summer camp, we can potentially serve every child participating in the camp as opposed to the dozen or so that would typically attend a single course. Importantly, these types of umbrella partners tend to be more stable than some emergency food providers. As a result, these efforts are more sustainable over time. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.
Impacts
Finch Network conducted an in‐depth evaluation of City Harvest's Nutrition Education programming in the South Bronx.The evaluation examines the effectiveness of City Harvest's Nutrition Education programs in addressing diet‐related neighborhood challenges and the impact programs are having upon participants. Finch found that, "City Harvest's Nutrition Education programs in the South Bronx have made significant in-roads in changing participants' dietary behavior and improving participants' health. The qualitative and quantitative analysis of City Harvest programs in the South Bronx demonstrate a network of programs and services that are helping to change the food landscape for neighborhoods in the South Bronx and provide residents with the information and tools to change their diets and improve their health." Specifically, they found the following: Participants' nutrition-related knowledge, skills, attitudes and practices: Both qualitative and quantitative data demonstrates that City Harvest participants are significantly more likely to engage in various healthy dietary behaviors after taking part in nutrition education courses. Participants reported changes in dietary habits including increased consumption of fruits and vegetables and use of low-fat dairy and whole grains. Participants' awareness as to the nutrition-related causes and effects of diet-related diseases like diabetes, obesity, and heart disease: Qualitative data demonstrates that nutrition education classes have been shown to help participants make the connection between what they eat and improving their health. In program stakeholder interviews, participants discussed how attending the nutrition education courses have helped them lower their weight, decrease their cholesterol, decrease the number of asthma attacks, and/or improve their glucose level readings. Change in dietary behavior among participants to increase consumption of healthy, nutrient rich foods: Participants noted an increase in consumption of nutrient-dense food both for themselves and their family members. They said the cooking tips and shopping skills learned during their nutrition education course helped them sustain these healthy dietary changes. Program Efficacy: City Harvest has proven program efficacy through its ability to increase positive eating behaviors by causing change in the nutrition-related knowledge, skills, attitudes and practices at the individual level. Evaluation data indicate that City Harvest's program participants successfully improve their knowledge about their food choices, their food shopping skills and understanding of the importance of a nutrient-dense diet to help maintain a healthy lifestyle.
Publications
- Finch Network. South Bronx Nutrition Education Case Study Report: An evaluation of City Harvest's Nutrition Education programming in the South Bronx including analysis of implementation level and outcome achievement, a review of evlauation methods and recommendations for future efforts. April 2011
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