Healthy Cents is an educational program designed to help adults save money while purchasing healthy food. Lessons focus on five themes:
- Making healthy and affordable food choices.
- Reducing food expenses.
- Developing a food spending plan.
- Planning a meal.
- Saving money on healthy food shopping.
Objectives
Healthy Cents helps participants develop skills to:
- Make healthy low-cost meals.
- Obtain community resources for healthy, affordable eating.
- Make healthy choices and keep costs low when eating away from home.
- Start a container garden for vegetables and herbs.
- Develop a food spending plan.
- Make weekly meal plans.
- Save time and money when shopping for food.
Space and time requirements
This program consists of 12 one-hour lessons. While each lesson can stand alone, lesson outcomes are best when taught as a series. Sessions can be adapted to meet the learning needs of participants, and within reason to fit the space and time needs of the partnering agency.
More information
Healthy Cents was developed by staff with University of Maryland Extension. The curriculum uses a dialogue learning approach to help participants develop food shopping and budgeting skills. During each lesson, participants are encouraged to apply new information in meaningful ways to their own lives. They work together to develop new skills and share their own strategies.
To find out more about this program or explore the possibilities of this program being offered at your agency, contact the SNAP-Ed team.