Research tells us that food insecurity and health issues often go hand-in-hand. For that reason, our registered dietitians work with program managers to ensure that NTFB's feeding programs take the nutritional needs of our clients into account. In addition to providing access to nutritious foods, NTFB also works to teach families, seniors and children about eating nutritiously on a budget, and partners with community gardens to gain more access to fresh, locally-grown produce.
Nutrition Education
NTFB has provided free culinary and nutrition education to low-income populations since 1996. In partnership with Share Our Strength’s Cooking Matters, NTFB offers food management courses to North Texans, teaching the basics of nutrition, cooking, food-budgeting and food safety to promote healthful and affordable food choices. In 2015, 420 participants were served through 27 six-week Cooking Matters courses coordinated by NTFB. More than 200 additional nutrition workshops reached 5,370 low-income participants with ways to eat nutritious food on a budget. NTFB also distributed some 218,000 free nutritional materials, including handouts and recipes, to further promote and support health education for food-insecure audiences.
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Produce Distribution
Since 1994, NTFB has worked to distribute fresh produce to food insecure children, seniors and families in North Texas. In fact, NTFB distributed 19 million pounds of fresh fruits or vegetables in 2015.
The Food Bank works to source fresh produce from local and national growers and also rescues unsold produce from more than 170 grocery store retailers. Produce is distributed through a variety of sites and programs including NTFB Partner Agencies, Nourishing Neighbors, the School Pantry program, and Brighter Bites. The work of distributing these delicate products requires refrigerated warehouse space, refrigerated trucks, and an investment in manual labor to get the products out quickly. NTFB is deeply committed to providing more nutritious choices, especially given the health benefits of fresh produce.
Volunteer in our Distribution Center to help pack produce and other foods
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Partner Gardens
NTFB partners with 23 community partner gardens to grow and connect fresh produce to those in need. Partner gardens donate 10 percent of their yield to a local Partner Agency, while NTFB provides volunteers to help with planting, harvesting and weeding the garden. More than 15,000 pounds of garden-fresh produce was donated through our partner gardens last year.
Current partner gardens include:
- We Over Me Farm
- Moss Haven Farm
- Lake Ridge Elementary Community Garden, Cedar Hill
- Shiloh Field Community Garden in Denton
- FUMCR Ministry Garden, Richardson
- Community Garden at Cliff Temple
- Discovery Community Garden
- Our Savior Community Garden
- Community Harvest Garden, Plano
- Live Oak Community Garden
Volunteer with NTFB partner gardens
Contact nutrition@ntfb.org for information on becoming a NTFB partner garden.
Food 4 Health
Through our new Food 4 Health program, we provide nutrition education and healthful food access to patients at 2 local health clinics. After participants are screened for food insecurity and referred into the program, they receive fresh produce and other nutritious nonperishable food items twice a month for 6 months at their clinic.
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