Food Security

Virginia Cooperative Extension participated on the Governor’s Taskforce to develop the Virginia Food Desert Study Report, which identified areas of Virginia where access to healthy food is limited. Without access to healthy food, residents face difficulty in making nutritious food choices and have a higher rate of nutrition-related chronic diseases. 

Initiatives

The Taskforce proposed highlighted the work of Virginia Cooperative Extension in solving the issue of food insecurity across the state by:

• Supporting the growth of local food systems 
  • Community and Leadership
  • Virginia Beginning Farmer and Rancher Coalition Program
• Providing technical assistance to farmers markets, particularly in establishing EBT payment systems at markets
  • Community Food Security
  • Virginia Farmer's Market Managers Association's SNAP/EBT tool kit
• Nutrition education to better manage available food resources and make healthier food choices
  • Master Food Volunteer Program
  • Family Nutrition Program
• Collaborating with communities to address barriers to food access