FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 27, 2007
Contact: HHS Press Office
202.690.6343

Hands-On Food and Nutrition Education Program Honored by HHS for Promoting Healthy Lifestyles

Cooking with Kids, Inc., Received National Award

SANTA FE, N.M. – Santa Fe’s Cooking with Kids, Inc., has been chosen as a national Innovation in Prevention Award by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) for its efforts in promoting healthy lifestyles in communities through its Cooking with Kids program.  The award was presented today during the Innovation in Prevention Awards Luncheon, in Washington, D.C.

The awards are part of President Bush’s ongoing HealthierUS initiative and HHS’ continuing focus on highlighting preventive health and recognizing organizations that implement innovative approaches to address chronic diseases and promote healthier lifestyles.  Cooking with Kids, Inc. an independent non-profit organization that provides hands-on food and nutrition education programming, has been named as the recipient of the Non-Profit award for its success in nurturing healthful eating habits among elementary school children from low-income families.

“Cooking with Kids is an example of how health education for children can be interesting and effective,” HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt said.  “The program’s approach to helping children make healthy food choices will provide a strong foundation throughout their entire lives.”

The Cooking with Kids program targets elementary school children from low-income families.  It currently reaches 4,266 students in 12 Santa Fe schools with ethnically diverse populations.  Cooking with Kids provides most of the funding, curriculum, food educators and materials for in school classes in which students receive guided lessons with healthy, fresh, affordable food from many cultural traditions.

The organization’s food educators teach cooking classes during the school day to kindergarten through sixth grade students, in partnership with teachers and parent volunteers.  Armed with materials from Cooking with Kids, school teachers teach fruit and vegetable tasting classes.  The program develops and provides curriculum materials for teachers and students with home recipes for families in Spanish and English.  Families are invited to participate as volunteers and separate family cooking classes are offered in the evenings in several of the participating schools.  The program has demonstrated significant qualitative results in nutritional awareness and nutritional behavior.

“All children deserve to have delicious, healthful food to eat,” said Lynn Walters, executive director of Cooking with Kids, Inc.  “I believe that we must nurture the intelligence of our children by providing them with opportunities to explore the exquisite variety of flavors and textures and to learn about and valued the experience of cooking.”

The Innovation in Prevention Awards Luncheon is part of the 2007 National Prevention Summit.