HPCB Seminar: Impact of Food Skills Programs on Fruit and Vegetable Consumption

Evidence Brief: Impact of Food Skills Programs on Fruit and Vegetable Consumption among Children and Youth

Food skills programs have been introduced in many communities partly due to growing concerns of children and youth avoiding healthy foods, such as fruits and vegetables. These programs often involve public health units to promote healthy eating and teach participants about nutrition, how to prepare and cook meals, safely handle and store food, read labels, and other food related skills.

The purpose of this webinar is to provide key findings from a literature review on the impact of food skills programs on fruit and vegetable consumption among children and youth and discuss implications for public health.

Learning objectives:

• Define food skills and explain the five generally accepted categories of skillsets
• Describe and explain scientific evidence on the effectiveness of food skills interventions as they relate to fruit and vegetable consumption among children and youth
• Discuss the implications of the research for public health

Speakers: Gloria Mensah; Lynn Roblin

Gloria Mensah is a Product Development Advisor with the Health Promotion Capacity Building team at PHO. Gloria supports knowledge product development through assisting the team with research, writing and other knowledge product related activities. She holds a Master of Public Health from the University of Waterloo and has previously worked for other government agencies.

Lynn Roblin is a Registered Dietitian and Policy Consultant for the Nutrition Resource Centre. Lynn’s areas of expertise are in health promotion and food literacy. Her focus is on capacity building and knowledge exchange related to healthy eating and nutrition policies and programs at the local and provincial level. In the past, Lynn has worked in two public health units and as a consultant has worked with several ministries. She was involved in the creation of the 1992 and 2007 Canada's Food Guides with Health Canada. Lynn has been a consultant to Dietitians of Canada as well as food marketing boards and industries. Lynn is past chair of the Ontario Collaborative Group on Healthy Eating and Physical Activity, is co-chair of the Ontario Food and Nutrition strategy Design Team and is on Sustain Ontario’s Board of Directors. Lynn was a founding member of the Halton Food Council and a former board member of the Halton Fresh Food Box program. She graduated from the University of Guelph with a BASc. in Applied Human Nutrition and holds a Master of Science in Human Kinetics.

Moderator: Kim Bergeron

Kim Bergeron is a health promotion consultant focusing on bylaw and policy development in the Health Promotion Capacity Building team at PHO. Kim holds a doctorate in health studies with a focus on health and the built environment from Queen’s University. Kim has over nineteen years of experience working within and alongside the Ontario public health system to facilitate multidisciplinary partnerships to create healthy, sustainable communities. She has provided consulting services to a number of provincial government programs working towards policy change, program development, and improving standards of practice.

Please note that you will receive details on how to join the webinar after registering for this event.

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If you have submissions, or questions or comments about the items above, send them to hpcb@oahpp.ca. Public Health Ontario is committed to complying with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA). If you require accommodations to participate in this event, please contact 647-260-7100 or events@oahpp.ca.