The Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP) is designed to assist limited resource audiences in acquiring the knowledge, skills, attitudes, and changed-behavior necessary for nutritionally sound diets, and to contribute to their personal development and the improvement of the total family diet and nutritional well-being.
About EFNEP
The CSREES' Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP) is a unique program that currently operates in all 50 states and in American Samoa, Guam, Micronesia, Northern Marianas, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. It is designed to assist limited-resource audiences in acquiring the knowledge, skills, attitudes, and changed behavior necessary for nutritionally sound diets, and to contribute to their personal development and the improvement of the total family diet and nutritional well-being.
Adult EFNEP
Through an experiential learning process, adult program participants learn how to make food choices to improve the nutritional quality of the meals they serve their families. They increase their ability to select and buy food that meets the nutritional needs of their family. They gain new skills in food production, preparation, storage, safety and sanitation, and they learn to better manage their food budgets and related resources such as Food Stamps. EFNEP is delivered as a series of 10-12 or more lessons, often over several months, by paraprofessionals and volunteers, many of whom are indigenous to the target population. The hands-on, learn-by-doing approach allows the participants to gain the practical skills necessary to make positive behavior changes. Through EFNEP, participants learn self-worth?that they have something to offer their families and society.
Youth EFNEP
The delivery of EFNEP youth programs takes on various forms. EFNEP provides nutrition education at schools as an enrichment of the curriculum, in after-school care programs and through 4-H EFNEP clubs, day camps, residential camps, community centers, neighborhood groups, and home gardening workshops. In addition to lessons on nutrition, food preparation, and food safety, youth topics may also include fitness, avoidance of substance abuse, and other health-related topics.
Program Delivery
County Extension home economists in provide on-the-job training and supervise paraprofessionals and volunteers who teach EFNEP. Paraprofessionals usually live in the communities where they work. They recruit families and receive referrals from neighborhood contacts and community agencies (such as Food Stamps and WIC). Methods for program delivery may include direct teaching in group or one-to-one situations; mailings and telephone teaching to complement other teaching methods; mass media efforts to develop understanding, awareness, and involvement in the educational program; and development and training of volunteers to assist with direct teaching of adults and youth.
Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program
Success Stories in Utah
At the Summer Craze Summer School Program, seven Professor Popcorn lessons plus an additional lesson on food safety were taught over a period of four weeks. One- hundred nine-teen (119) children were divided into three groups and ranged from 8 through 14 years in age. The classes were divided into three levels, I, II, and III, and were presented according to the ages of each group. A wide variety of topics were covered, including the Food Guide Pyramid; proper food choices and number of servings and amounts in a serving; how to read food labels; recognize sources of excess dietary fat, sugar, and salt; and the foods’ tendencies toward “addictions.” The students did “hands- on” experiments prepared their own snacks which were geared toward healthy, low-fat, low sugar selections that included fruit salad, popcorn, vegetables and dips, and creations of creatures made of their choice of fruits, vegetables, nuts, etc. At the end of the month, the students received packets containing copies of all of the games, recipes and resource material covered during the course.
Funding was renewed for a second year from the USDA Food Distribution Program for Indian Reservation (FDPIR) and supported one EFNEP teacher at the Fort Duchesne Indian Reservation in Uintah County. Nineteen families were taught, which included 55 family members, located on the Uintah/Ouray Reservation and nearby communities.
For further information: Go to the Internet... utahefnep.org Call: Paula Scott (801) 451-3405