FoodChain connects community to wellness, well-being through healthy food

The challenges – even pre-pandemic – were many: One in six Kentuckians is food insecure. Fifteen percent of Fayette Countians live in a food desert, so those with the fewest resources have the least access to fresh, nutritious food.

It’s no wonder that our commonwealth ranks high in diet-related health indicators, including obesity, diabetes and heart disease.

In addition, Kentucky’s family farms are challenged to compete with big agriculture and need to be able to tap into more sustainable food systems.

Even people with means often make unhealthy food choices when they don’t know how to cook on their own with whole ingredients or understand how to incorporate seasonal produce and ingredients.

March is National Nutrition Month, and FoodChain, a Lexington nonprofit that connects the community to fresh food through education and demonstration of sustainable food systems, also is celebrating our 10-year anniversary.

Now is the time to focus not just on the problems but on proven solutions. Nourishing food is preventive medicine. Through education, partnerships and access, we can improve the wellness and well-being of all our families.

Teaching and job training are critical components of FoodChain’s success, which involves working with youth, neighborhood families, farmers, and local restaurant workers and owners. Education efforts teach important information about nutrition, healthy cooking and sustainable food, while training provides important skills to help participants find jobs in the food industry.

Our eight-week job program helps people learn kitchen safety, sanitation, knife skills, work with fresh produce, basic kitchen math, as well as soft skills for any employment, such as resume creation, conflict resolution, timeliness and communication. FoodChain also arranges externship placement with a local food business. All graduates obtain their Food Handlers License and are given a chef uniform, a knife kit and a financial stipend.

From the summer feeding program to healthy school snacks and a classroom aquaponics program, students gain access to healthy, local foods as well as immersive opportunities such as school gardens, cooking lessons and farm field trips.

In FoodChain’s Teaching and Processing Kitchen, we expand access to fresh food. We hold cooking classes, process locally grown vegetables and prepare meals. We also process and preserve local seconds and surplus produce (drying, freeze-drying and freezing) so the ingredients are convenient and available year-round.

By working with the production, processing, preparation and consumption of food, FoodChain has a unique vantage point that lets us make innovative connections across the food system, which is best exemplified with our newest flagship initiative, Nourish Lexington.

This community collaboration stepped in during the pandemic to provide more than 360,000 wholesome meals for families in need while providing meaningful employment and much-needed income to local food system professionals, small business owners and farmers. It has evolved into meal delivery kits and feeding a prepared meal to those in need while continuing to invest in locally sourced vegetables.

Our aquaponics farm demonstrates sustainable agriculture in an urban environment. The farm is used to educate producers about this method of agriculture for economic diversity and conduct research while growing some of the freshest greens, microgreens and seafood in the city.

In 10 years, FoodChain has provided sustenance and education to those who need it most:

▪ 450,000 meals served

▪ $1.3 million invested in the local food economy

▪ 67 workforce development graduates

▪ More than 63,500 pounds of local produce processed

▪ More than $55,000 of produce purchased from local farms

▪ More than 41,000 hours of education provided

▪ 90 classroom aquaponic systems installed

▪ More than 10,000 pounds of produce and 2,700 pounds of fish/shrimp harvested

▪ 286 households enrolled in mobile meal delivery

As we plan for the future, an even bolder vision will propel FoodChain forward with an increased emphasis on meeting people where they are through nutritious food delivery, meal kits and digital education offerings.

Knowledge is transformational, and participation is powerful. By breaking down barriers, we are building a healthier community and creating a seat at the table for everyone through sustainable and equitable food programs and enriching education.

Neal is executive director of FoodChain, a local nonprofit that forges links between community and fresh food. Learn more at Foodchainlex.org.