National Nutrition Month began on March 1, 2025! This year’s theme is “Food Connects Us”. Each week of March has a unique message that relates to the theme. The message for the first week of March is “Connect with Food”. The important points of this weekly message from the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics are:

• Learn cooking, food preparation, and meal planning skills.
• Explore where your food comes from. 
• Learn about community resources such as SNAP, WIC, and local food banks.

N.C. Cooperative Extension Agents and Educators can bring this message of connecting with food to the community by continuing to offer cooking and food preservation programs and opportunities to allow community members to explore where food comes from and learn about community food access resources. This week, we highlight the work of two FCS Agents, Ashley Szilvay of Lee County and Sydney Knowles of Sampson County, whose work “connects with food” in many ways. Scroll down to learn more about what they are doing in their communities. Additionally, other ideas to get the community involved include:

• Schedule a recipe demonstration at the local farmers’ market and showcase a local grower’s crops in your recipe. See this resource for more information.
• Work with the Steps to Health team to establish healthy food guidelines at food pantries in your community.
• Host or film a virtual cooking demonstration on social media that features an easy, budget-friendly recipe and education on healthy eating on a budget. 
• Post a nutrition tip of the day on social media for all 31 days of March or just for one week. 

For more information about National Nutrition Month and the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics resources, visit https://www.eatright.org/national-nutrition-month. This website includes a social media toolkit with weekly graphics and messages ready for you to distribute to your community (note: AND prohibits alteration of NNM social media graphics for public distribution).

What’s Ashley doing in Lee County to “Connect with Food”? Read below to find out!

Ashley Szilvay, FCS Agent, Lee County Cooperative Extension, in collaboration with the NC State Steps to Health team, conducted a pilot test of the Supporting Wellness at Pantries (SWAP) ranking system at the Christians United Outreach Center (CUOC) of Lee County, a nonprofit food pantry. The SWAP stoplight ranking system focuses on nutritionally adequate foods in the charitable food system. Three components of the SWAP system nudge food pantry clients to choose healthier foods, including (1) color-coded signage, (2) signage with messaging to identify the green (go), yellow (think first), and red (caution) foods and (3) the placement of green foods.

The team implemented the SWAP system in the CUOC food pantry in Spring 2024 in English and Spanish and deployed a customer survey to assess clients’ perceptions and potential dietary intentions after experiencing the SWAP system in the client-choice pantry.

Ashley shares: “I’m excited that our SWAP kit project has evolved into Green Food Taste Tests, aligning with the stoplight nutrition system, allowing us to engage directly with pantry clients on creative food pairings for better health, even with limited options. Their enthusiasm and feedback, like one client appreciating a simple white bean dip that meets her needs while currently being without housing, highlights the real impact of meeting people where they are.”

What’s Sydney doing in Sampson County to “Connect with Food”? Read below to find out!

At the Table is an educational cooking show that features realistic recipes made with locally available ingredients. In 2020, a partnership was developed between Sampson County Cooperative Extension and Star Communications, a local TV station, making the show available to Sampson and Bladen residents and the general public via YouTube. Sydney Knowles, FCS Agent, Sampson County Cooperative Extension, hosts and helps produce the show, while Jessie Jones, FCS Agent, Bladen County Cooperative Extension, joined as an additional host and producer in 2024. The show has produced 146 episodes covering a wide range of topics, including the Mediterranean Diet, ethnic cuisine, hurricane preparedness, food safety, and local foods. Over the years, several episodes have highlighted the importance of local foods, featuring guest appearances from farmers and small business owners in the community.

Sydney and Jessie have discussed the Visit NC Farms App, defining local foods, answering common local food questions, guidance on growing and cooking fruits and vegetables with the Extension Master Gardeners, and much more.

Viewers have reported health benefits from watching the show, including weight loss, lower blood pressure, and improved cholesterol. Many have also shared that increasing fruit and vegetable intake and cooking more meals at home contribute to improved health.

Sydney Shares: “My favorite part of hosting the cooking show is reaching a greater audience while learning from guests who join me. High school Family and Consumer Science teachers and local senior center directors have told me they regularly play the show for their students/attendees. So, it’s great to have additional outreach and hear it’s useful to the community.”

Written by Maggie Martin and Emily Youmans, dietetic interns.

Maggie and Emily are MS Nutrition students at Meredith College and dietetic interns in the Department of Agricultural and Human Sciences for the spring 2025 semester under the supervision of Christy O’Connor, Produce Prescription and Diabetes Programs, Extension Associate, and Dr. Basheerah Enahora, Assistant Professor and Extension Specialist.