The Tennessee Nutrition and Consumer Education Program once again will be a part of the education opportunities offered by the Carter County UT Extension office.

Classes were cut a few years ago after federal funding was lost, Carter County Extension Agent Vickie Clark said. Now that the funding is available again, the classes will return.

“We are excited that we can once again do these nutrition and education courses,” Clark said.

The federally funded program focuses on providing nutrition education to lower income families, specifically those who receive Supplements Nutrition Assistance Program money each month.

The classes will be offered through schools, Head Start classes, the Carter County Health Department and classes arranged through the Extension Office. When working with schools, the classes will be planned through the Coordinated School Health Program and will focus on nutrition facts at a child’s level.

“We have had daycares that have expressed interest in doing the program for their kids,” Clark said.

Other classes will be geared toward adults and will share healthy eating facts for the whole family. The classes will include information on healthy food choices, healthy recipes and introducing children to new healthy foods, Clark said.

“One of the goals is to get children to try new things,” Clark said. “Things they are more familiar with they are willing to try, but not foods they don’t recognize. Most of the time, once they try new foods, they like them.”

To help facilitate the classes, the Carter County extension office will be hiring a program coordinator to work 30 hours a week planning and overseeing classes.

Clark hopes to have the classes started by the end of March.

For more information, contact Clark at 542-1818.