I am excited to share with you a project that is close to my heart: Grocery Market Kits. These easy, healthy meal kits are designed specifically for needy families, and I recently had the opportunity to pitch this idea at 1 Million Cups St. Louis on September 6, 2023. You can check out my landing page with the video of my pitch and download my pitch deck for more detailed information and citations here.
What Are Grocery Market Kits and Why?
A Grocery Market Kit is an affordable family meal kit that comes in a reusable bag, making it easy to carry on a bus, in a wheelchair, car, or even on a walk home. These meal kits can be purchased with EBT cards (also known as Food Stamps) and, when possible, are eligible for Double Up Food Bucks, coupons, and other savings programs. Each kit is designed to be scalable, feeding a family of four to eight or more, accommodating both adults and children.
Key Benefits of Grocery Market Kits:
- Accessibility: Each recipe and meal card is written in 16-point font at a 3rd-grade reading level, complete with illustrations and videos to ensure they are easy to understand.
- Minimal Resources: The meals can be cooked using one pot or pan, with multiple preparation methods (microwave, stovetop, etc.), eliminating the need for complicated kitchen appliances.
- Affordability: Each serving costs $5 or less, helping people budget their SNAP benefits effectively and stretch them further.
- Stress Reduction: By simplifying SNAP budgeting and meal planning, these kits help reduce the stress that often affects impoverished people, thereby improving their ability to reason and plan.
- Health and Education: The kits aim to educate and encourage healthier eating habits to prevent and treat diseases such as Type II Diabetes and obesity. They also address food waste from grocery stores and donated raw ingredients to food banks.
Addressing Nutritional Inequality
Research has shown that placing a supermarket in a food desert only changes transportation habits and does little to improve eating habits. By providing healthy food options that promote health, Grocery Market Kits aim to be a productive step towards solving the problem of nutritional inequality.
Community Involvement and Support
I am thrilled to share that I have received support and interest from several local organizations. The St. Louis Science Center’s Youth Exploring Science program has agreed to make video demonstrations produced by HECTV, and I have garnered interest from the St. Louis Area Food Bank and St. Louis Public Schools.
Join the Movement
I invite you to watch the video of my pitch at 1 Million Cups St. Louis and learn more about Grocery Market Kits by visiting the landing page. There, you can also download the pitch deck for more detailed information and citations.
Together, we can make a difference in the lives of needy families by providing them with easy, healthy, and affordable meal options. Thank you for your support!
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