- Author: Eli Israel Figueroa
- Editor: Andra Nicoli
CalFresh Healthy Living (CFHL), University of California Cooperative Extension (UCCE) in Contra Costa County promotes healthy communities with a nutrition education curriculum designed to improve teens' eating and fitness choices. Of the 117 middle school youth who participated in EatFit, 30% increased the number of times they ate vegetables.
The Issue
Food and beverage companies invest over $1 billion in marketing each year to advertise their food products to Black and Hispanic consumers, specifically the youth. Students at Hillview Jr. High School (HJHS)–which is located in a low-income neighborhood of Pittsburg and has a 60% Hispanic and 19% African American student population– are not exempt from these widespread and targeted food marketing campaigns. Fast food restaurants, convenience stores, and gas stations line the main street avenue near the school, attracting hungry teens.The easy availability and promotion of these foods, which are linked to negative life-long consequences, influence the food choices made by youth every day. When hunger strikes, healthy eating and active living are out of sight and out of mind to many teens.
How UC Delivers
CFHL, UCCE in Contra Costa County partnered with HJHS to deliver EatFit during the 2022-2023 school year. EatFit is a nutrition education goal-setting curriculum designed to challenge middle school students to improve their eating and fitness choices. The program reached 149 students who participated in activities focused on goal setting, nutrition facts label, energy, breakfast, exercise, fast food, and the media's influence on food choices.
In one of the EatFit lessons, students learned about food marketing. They were asked to name a commercial or ad on the Internet about water or healthy food. None could. However, when asked for examples of fast food or soda ads and commercials, all hands went up. Some students even sang the jingle or acted out the commercial. Students realized that food companies target young people and hardly promote healthy foods. Instead, TV commercials and advertisements on the Internet and social media try to persuade teens to eat and drink unhealthy foods and sugary beverages that harm their health. In the same lesson, students also learned about food marketing techniques and were encouraged to create fruit and vegetable posters to promote healthy choices at school.
With support from the principal, the school's busiest hallways were decorated with students' colorful fruit and vegetable posters. Not one poster was vandalized or torn off.
The Impact
One hundred and seventeen students in grades 6-8 completed the Eating and Activity Tool for Students (EATS) pre-post survey at Hillview Jr. High to assess changes in their behaviors after participating in the FY 2023 EatFit lesson series. Respondents were ten to thirteen years old, and identified as Latino or Hispanic (48%), Black or African American (18%), or more than one race (27%). After taking part in EatFit, the student survey results included the following:
- 34% increased the number of time they ate fruit yesterday.
- 30% increased the number of time they ate vegetables yesterday.
- 50% reduced the number of times they drank sweetened beverages yesterday - with the largest decreases seen in fruit drinks, soda, and sweetened coffees and teas.
- 40% increased the number of days they were physically active for 60 minutes or more last week.
“One change I made to eat healthier/be more physically active is to exercise/stretch when I wake up and lower how much unhealthy food I eat (high fat food, high calories etc) and start eating more fruits and veggies.” — EatFit Participant
This work is vital in adolescents as they begin to become more independent in the way they think, learn, and interact with food. Likewise, nutrition education intervention efforts in majority Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) communities are of particular importance because these groups have been expressly targeted as potential consumers of nutrient-poor food while also facing barriers to accessing affordable and convenient healthy food. By supporting students to reflect critically on how unhealthy food and beverages are advertised to them and then develop their counter-messages to promote healthy choices, inclusive SNAP-Ed-approved programs like EatFit and others can help improve nutrition behaviors among low-income adolescent Californians and prevent the chances of developing chronic disease later in life.
CFHL, UCCE staff will continue to partner with Hillview Jr. High to deliver quality nutrition education during the 2023-2024 school year. The fruit and vegetable posters made by students serve as a friendly reminder to all that food marketing does not steal your independence; you can still make a healthy, tasty choice.
“Before, I use to just get snacks to eat them but a lot of them were unhealthy and I got cavities. During the lesson we learned that the labels are actually important. Now I check the label to compare and buy the snack that is more healthy. It is working I am more healthy and happy.”— Jacob Ponce, EatFit Participant
- Author: Ben Faber
It may be fun to grow BIG fruit. But how do you sell it? A lot of fruit like avocado and dragon fruit is sold by the piece and others like apples and navel oranges are sold by the pound. How would this be sold?
Hawaiian family claims pomelo
sets world record
reproduced from: hawaiinewsnow.comm
A family from Moanalua (Honolulu), Hawaii is claiming their tree produced a world record-setting fruit. The Nishimura family says their tree created a massive jabong, or pomelo.
According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the heaviest pomelo weighed 10 pounds 11.3 ounces. It was grown by the Kumamoto Prefectural Yatsushiro Agricultural High School in Yatsushiro, Japan in 2014.
The large fruit weighed in at 12 pounds, potentially setting a new world record. (Source: HNN)
“The record is like 10 pounds, so this beats it by two pounds,” Kaito Nishimura said. “My grandpa actually got the tree and he said this is the biggest one he's seen in his life,” Nishimura added.
The family isn't exactly sure what they're gonna do with the 12-pound fruit. According to hawaiinewsnow.comm they'll need to get the weight verified by world record officials to get it in the books.
Photo: Huge fruit in perspective (Source: Hawaii News Now)
/h1>/h1>- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Add an innovative project involving insects.
Add three talented instructors: Diane Ullman, professor of entomology, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology, and lecturers Gale Okumura and Morissa Rubin of the UC Davis Department of Design
Result: an art exhibition, “The World of Insects: Paper, Tile, Branding and Packaging.” to take place from 6 to 8 p.m., Wednesday, June 6 in the Environmental Horticulture courtyard, located near Walter A. Buehler Alumni and Visitors Center on Alumni Drive. The event is free and open to the public.
The students will display their branding and packaging of their product for edible insects, said Okumura. "The design students were to create a pattern from the assigned insect, as well as design a logo for their branding, which was then applied to their packaging and business system," she said. "The packaging had be appealing to the consumer and in some sense, change behavior of the audience to buy edible insects by having appealing graphics."
Rubin said the silkscreen prints "focus on illustrations of the insect and its key features (entomology students) or graphic patterns derived from significant markings or features of the insect. Additionally design students have developed an insect related product and its entire graphic identity."
Bottom line: Prepare to enter an amazing world you may not have seen before--the incredible world of insects, coupled with innovative marketing and designs.
And maybe, just maybe, you'll add crickets to your diet?
If you haven't already?
- Author: Ben Faber
Meet the Buyer: An L.A. Produce Market Tour for Los Angeles Growers and Food Advocates
Do you want to find new channels for selling your produce and make connections with produce buyers? Join us on a one day tour of produce distributors in the L.A. area where you will meet with senior buyers and leaders at these distribution companies committed to building their local base of suppliers:
Santa Monica Farmers' Market - our early start will allow for a special behind-the-scenes market tour to learn about the vibrant business-to-business transactions occuring there every week.
Space Exploration Technologies - meet the culinary team feeding the folks at the frontier of space exploration seasonally-inspired menus, much of it sourced from farms nearby.
Whole Food Distribution Center - talk with buyers committed to small, local and organic producers at the new state-of-the-art distribution facility and enjoy a yummy lunch.
Heath & Lejeune - learn the art of distributing orgranic produce from a seasoned buyer / seller.
These high-level buyers are positioned to appreciate your farm and products—whether organic, local, family-owned, sustainably grown, or high quality specialty crops. You'll gain an understanding of what it takes to work with them, have a chance to network with other farmers, and learn tips on how to tell a compelling story about your farm and its products that will expand your sales opportunities. This tour will be valuable for ANY farmer who wants to learn more about different distribution channels for their products, as well as for healthy food advocates and policy makers who want to have a better understanding of what small farms need to do in order to connect with willing buyers.
Space is limited; advance registration is required. Please reserve your space by December 4th, 2015. Lunch and snacks will be provided. There is no charge for this tour thanks to our generous sponsors.
Sign up at:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/meet-the-buyer-an-la-produce-market-tour-for-los-angeles-growers-and-food-advocates-tickets-19216471985
- Author: Molly Nakahara
70% of all purchases are made with plastic!
Did you know that cash is used at only 25% of point of sale purchases? Predictions are that cash will be used even less as more alternative payment methods become available. Debit and credit cards are used for over 70% of purchases. Customers enjoy the flexibility and ease of using plastic to pay for purchases. And research shows that consumers spend differently with credit cards than they do with cash! "Mental accounting” is the idea that people treat money differently based on a number of factors: where the money came from (salary vs. gift), the size of a transaction, and the form the money is in when a purchase is made. That last one is important – people tend to spend more money paying by card than paying with cash; i.e. when they don't actually see those dollars and cents leaving their hands. You should not use a credit card reader because it is a stealthy way to dupe your customers into purchasing more of your gorgeous veggies. But it is undeniable that accepting cash only sales severely limits the number of potential customers you may have at a farmers' market.
But what about the fees?!
All credit card processing companies do charge a service fee, usually around 2.75%. It may be a good idea to set a minimum for card purchases – $10. You can also feel comfortable passing the processing fee to customers by charging a convenience fee per swipe (consumers do this all of the time- think about the fees for pumping gas or withdrawing money from an ATM.) In my personal experience as a farmers' market vendor, customers often forget to grab their cash or hit the bank before a market and are relieved that they don't have to limit their market purchases. They enthusiastically whip out their plastic and are tickled by the user-friendly technology they get to use. Writing a signature across the screen of a smartphone is fun! Remember: you can always let people know that you prefer cash but having your credit card reader will help you build your customer base and make shopping at your market booth more convenient. It will probably also increase your sales.
How do I get started?
It is very simple to set up and use a smartphone credit card reader. You must have a smartphone that has a data plan (i.e. access to the Internet through a network.) Next step- set up an account with a smartphone credit card reading company. Square Up is the most used card reader available currently, though Intuit and Paypal both have similar products. I recommend Square. It is free, simple, used at many retail locations and customers are familiar with it. Once you have an account set up, you will receive a free credit card reader in the mail.It plugs into the headphone jack of your phone. You will also need to download the free app that accompanies the card reader. If you are feeling intimidated, ask a fellow market vendor for a quick tutorial.
Great sales tracking!
Once you have an account with Square, you can customize your account to track your sales. You can create “items” with specific prices or leave prices blank to fill in at check-out (in the case of items that you sell by weight.) A few quick taps of the finger and instead of a $30 payment without any details, you can record transaction details: 1 bouquet, 3 baskets of berries, and 2 pounds of tomatoes.
Another great tracking and management tool is the ability to set up employee profiles. Your employees can access your square account using a password that you assign. You are able to specify what each employee is able to do; ie accept payments, access sales records, etc.
A few tips
- You will need to update your card reader every year or so to keep up with the changing technology and improvements that Square makes. This is free to do and you will receive a reminder email. You can have as many card readers as you like- always good to have a back-up on hand.
- Square will save the personal information a customer enters to receive a receipt (either as a text message or email.) You can skip the receipt- I remind people that they will see the charge on their credit card or bank statement.
- The money you accept through Square is deposited to your specified bank account the next business day. For weekend farmers markets, this means you won't see the money until Monday. Don't forget to include these sales in your farmers' market accounting.
- Be sure to make a big sign for the farmers' market letting customers know that you accept plastic! Square will provide you with a small window decal, but you need a sign that catches the eye from across the market!
Using this technology is simple and many of you already possess the tools needed (i.e. a smartphone) to offer this simple service to your customers. Get started today!
References:
https://www.javelinstrategy.com/brochure/251
http://elearning2.uniroma1.it/pluginfile.php/101759/mod_resource/content/1/Thaler1999.pdf