Expanding Education to Underserved Communities through UCANR Programs: Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program, Master Gardener Program, and Master Food Preserver Program

UCCE San Bernardino County received a grant from the Sustainable Agriculture Research & Education Program (SAREP) to provide education to at risk communities in San Bernardino County. The grant began June 2021 and will continue through May 2022. Two groups of parents were a part of the three program collaboration consisting of a series of workshops from the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP) , Master Gardener (MG) and Master Food Preserver (MFP) Programs. Twelve lessons in total were provided at the Victor Elementary School District Parent Resource Center and via Zoom for Middle College High School parents. All workshops were conducted in Spanish to help reach the underserved population in San Bernardino County. Kits were provided during the workshops to give the participants opportunities to practice along with the educator or prepare on their own at home.

The EFNEP workshops consisted of a series of 8 lessons including topics such as reading the nutrition facts label, food safety, MyPlate, stretching the food dollar, importance of exercise, limiting salt, sugar and fat. Parents were given a kit with ingredients to prepare Cowboy Caviar and Apple Salad recipes. At the parent center, the educator provided a live demonstration and sent kits home with parents to make their own apple salad. The educator conducted another food demonstration via Zoom while parents made the recipes in their homes. One mother added additional vegetables she had in her refrigerator to the Cowboy Caviar and reported her family loved the meal she served for dinner that evening. Graduates of the EFNEP program received a cookbook and certificate of graduation.

The EFNEP workshops were followed by the MFP and MG workshops alternating each week. Victor Elementary School District held an in person hands on activity making three tiered herb gardens. Participants received pots, soil, seeds, transplants and cuttings during the hands on workshop. All participants went home with their new garden and tips on maintaining it. This workshop was repeated for the Middle College High School parents along with those that were not able to attend VESD via Zoom. Parents received kits at their school sites and watched the live demonstration with time for questions at the end. The last MG workshop was Growing Cool Season Vegetables. Parents learned which vegetables were best to grow in the high desert climate and how to care for them in the process. They were given a binder with information about growing and maintaining vegetables, a pot, Popsicle sticks and a sharpie to label their vegetables, seeds for carrots, peas and radishes, and tote bag.

The Master Food Preserver program also provided two workshops for the parents. Each workshop emphasized the importance of food safety including proper storage of food, sanitation and hand washing. The first was refrigerator pickling. The volunteers conducted a live demonstration walking parents through the entire process. Parents were given a kit to take home. The kit included carrots, jalapenos, garlic, pickling salt and spices, a container, a bottle of vinegar and the recipe. They were given options to create the recipe either sweet or salty depending on preference. The next workshop was a hands on activity making freezer jam with mixed berries. The volunteers walked parents through the process. Each participate was given a bag of frozen mixed berries, a container, sugar, and pectin. They took home their homemade jam along with the recipe.

All workshops reinforced concepts of food safety, saving money by shopping on sale as well as growing and preserving your own food. This addressed the area of food insecurity which is something that families in San Bernardino struggle with. Parents were excited to participate in all workshops and share photos of making and growing their food at home. Parents who attended all twelve workshops received a certificate of completion. These activities will continue throughout the year reaching more families in San Bernadino County.

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