Good food doesn't have to break the bank
Skipping meals or turning to cheaper unhealthy alternatives are some of the ways families in the outer west are coping with rising petrol costs, mortgage rates, rents and food prices says ANGLICARE.
“Financial pressures can make a huge impact on what a family eats as food is one of the few areas that you can actually reduce your spending. We do get some people telling us how they might feed their children but decide to go without themselves or save up junk food vouchers that can feed a family for five dollars,” says ANGLICARE program co-ordinator Jill Clarke.
However, there are ways to provide healthy meals for the family without breaking the bank according to Jill. For the past term ANGLICARE has been running a basic cooking program showing parents with children under the age of five ways to cook cheap nutritious meals for their families.
“Often more nutritious options can seem more expensive if you don’t know what you are looking for and that can have long term consequences on, not only your own health, but also the health of your children. As well as basic cooking skills, we’ve been teaching parents how to buy fresh food economically,” explains Jill.
“Certainly the rising prices of fresh produce have been challenging, but we’ve been showing parents how to look at bulking up the nutrition content with cost effective produce like beans or ways to make three meals out of one barbeque chicken. Being aware of the seasonality of recipes and how to buy produce that are in season have also been a way to help keep the grocery prices down.”
What started out as a basic cooking program with a few cost saving tips has taken on a life of its own with demand growing for more advanced cooking programs and the possibility of setting up a fresh foodco-operative.
“It has been great to see how a simple thing like learning to cook and what type of food to look for can make a difference in people’s lives,” says Jill.
“We’ve had single mums, mums and dads, single parenting dads, dads working part time finishing the course and wanting to go further. Some have even said what a positive benefit it’s had on their health and wellbeing. And next term we’re all looking forward to fast Ed from Better Homes and Gardens coming a long to teach us.”
The ANGLICARE run basic cooking program is free for anyone with children under the age of 5. For more information contact ANGLICARE on 9832 2300.
Media Contact: Agnes Wilson 0412 434 307
