Brought to you by: Pathways Matane

“The activity went well. We had a free lunch, offered in collaboration with the cafeteria. 400 students came. We also prepared bookmarks with the 4 food groups as informational material for youth. We also had a game with questions related to food.”  

A Pathways staff member

Program Activity Snapshot:

To teach students the benefits of eating healthy and provide them with a space to eat well and connect with their peers and Pathways staff: 

• In collaboration with the school, we installed a new refrigerator and cabinet in the cafeteria to provide free healthy meals to Pathways students daily  
• We collaborated with a nutritionist to inform the development of the menus and lead workshops on healthy eating 
• Youth participated in the decision-making and planning of promotional activities  
• We planned a launch event that included a concert with a local musician 

Objectives:

1. Strengthen the health and well-being of youth through food and nutrition education 
2. Reduce food insecurity challenges that students may experience 
3. Increase students’ ability to concentrate and learn at school by increasing the quality of the food they eat and teaching them the benefits of eating healthy

What was the result?

• Developed new partnerships with the Collective Kitchen in the Matane region to provide meals  
• Youth completed Safe Food Handling training   
• Youth increased their knowledge in healthy food choices 

Want to try this out?

What you’ll need:

1. Staffing Support: One Program Facilitator working 2 hours a week 
2. Duration: Over the course of a school year 
3. Teaching Aids:    
   • Refrigerator  
   • Access to supply of healthy food 
   • Lunch boxes   
   • A nutritionist to lead the workshops  

What you’ll do:

1. Create a partnership with the school and regional food kitchens   
2. Resource equipment and supplies: 
   • Refrigerator and cabinet  
   • Lunches, healthy snacks, and drinks  
3. Plan Safe Food Handling training for youth volunteers who help serve food in the cafeteria  
4. Provide reusable lunchboxes to students who don’t have one so they can properly store their food 
5. Create workshops to raise awareness of the benefits of eating healthy in collaboration with a nutritionist  

Downloadable resources (e.g. templates, examples used):