PEORIA, Ill. – Local non-profit Peoria Grown got started eight years ago, with a focus on providing healthy food to low-income households.
Executive Director Julie Eliathamby tells WMBD’s “Greg and Dan” most families want to eat healthy, but some simply can’t afford it.
“So, that’s why we came up with the idea for Market 309. It started five years ago, down at Trewyn Park in the south end of Peoria, because when we looked at where’s the biggest need, that’s the biggest need we saw,” Eliathamby said.
Eliathamby says many families not only struggle with accessibility to fresh food, but also with an understanding of what healthy food is.
That’s something Peoria Grown is trying to change.
“We are so fortunate to get some of OSF and Carle Health dietitians donating their time. We also partner with Bradley (University) with their dietetic programming to get their master dietitians to be able to go out with us and do classes with the kids,” Eliathamby said.
Eliathamby says lawmakers need to make it easier for low-income households to have access to healthy food by changing the current funding regulations.
A few weeks ago, Peoria Grown learned it had been denied participation in WIC’s Senior Farmer’s Market Nutrition Program, meaning that senior citizens can no longer use their WIC vouchers at the organization’s storefront Market 309.
To learn more about Peoria Grown click HERE.
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