EFNEP (Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program) is a free nutrition education program offered in several counties in Ohio for low-income adults with children and youth. Program assistants use interactive discussions and hands-on activities to guide participants through a series of meetings aimed at improving the total family diet and nutritional well-being.

The adult program teaches low-income adults with children how to make healthier food choices, manage their food resources, improve their food safety practices, and provides ideas on how to get active with their families.

The youth program teaches kids about nutrition, food preparation, food safety, and physical activity during a six-week, interactive program in classrooms, after-school programs/camps, and summer feeding sites.

EFNEP is funded by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), a branch of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The program operates through Extension offices at land-grant institutions in every state and in the six U.S. territories. In Ohio, EFNEP is administered by Ohio State University Extension.

EFNEP is offered at a variety of community sites throughout Cuyahoga County and combines new information with interactive activities, food samplings and physical activity.  Provided in a series of classes, EFNEP targets caregivers of children (18 years and younger) and also youth in primarily grades 3 through 8. 

*This program is available free of charge to those who qualify.

Ohio State University Extension has provided this program in Cuyahoga County since 1969. In 2014, EFNEP celebrated its 45th year as a federally-funded program serving the community.

Annually, nearly 1,000 Cuyahoga County families benefit from EFNEP by learning how to prepare healthy, safe meals for their families and encouraging better health for themselves and their children through good nutrition practices.  From these 1,000 families, more than 3,500 individuals were impacted by new knowledge and improved behaviors related to food and nutrition.

Learn more about EFNEP at http://fcs.osu.edu/nutrition/efnep and http://nifa.usda.gov/program/expanded-food-and-nutrition-education-program-efnep