COLDEN, N.Y. (WKBW) — As grocery prices rise, FeedMore WNY is helping residents learn how to prepare healthy meals without breaking the bank.
On Thursday, community members gathered at the Bread of Life Outreach Center in Colden for a cooking demonstration hosted through FeedMore WNY's nutrition education programming.
Participants learned how to prepare a vegetable stir-fry, sampled the finished meal, and took home both the recipe and ingredients needed to make it themselves.
"They learn how to make it, taste it, then we give them the ingredients and they can cook it at home as well," Bread of Life Outreach Center Executive Director Cathy Geist said.
WATCH: FeedMore WNY program helps rural residents fight food insecurity
The class comes at a time when many families continue to feel the impact of higher food costs.
According to the Consumer Price Index, grocery prices were up 2.9 percent in April compared to the same month a year ago.
Those challenges can be especially difficult in rural communities, where residents often have fewer food options and must travel farther to access grocery stores and services.
Feeding America reports that nine out of 10 counties with the highest food insecurity rates in the country are rural.
"It's really important for us to make sure we're working to both feed the line of people that need food assistance today, but work to shorten the line of people who need food assistance and really tackle the root causes of food insecurity," FeedMore WNY Public Relations Manager Catherine Shick said.
Shick said nutrition education is a key part of FeedMore's approach to hunger relief. In addition to providing food assistance, the organization offers programs designed to help people make healthy choices, prepare meals at home, and maximize limited food budgets.
"People don't realize just how prevalent rural food insecurity is," Shick said.
Geist said the classes also help fill a knowledge gap that many people may not realize exists.
"We just assume that people know how to cook, but some people don't know how to cook at all," Geist said. "So this gives them the opportunity to ask questions and find out what is healthy," she explained.
Organizers say the goal is not simply to provide a meal for a day, but to give participants practical skills they can use long after the class ends.
As food prices remain elevated, they hope those lessons can help families stretch their grocery dollars while still putting nutritious meals on the table.
