Resilience: Southern Indiana Farm to Health Initiative

Project abstract

In this project, IU lends research support to a community-led public health intervention created by partners in Orange and Crawford counties. IU will aim to assess effects of a multi-faceted intervention community partners were inspired to create to (1) get more local vegetables and fruits circulating in the community, (2) expose people to this local produce, and (3) teach them to cook with it at home. The evaluation will assess participants' experiences with the project, any shifts in their perspectives and routines, and some changes to their health after the intervention, by measuring select biometrics.

The 12-week intervention will have two components. It will provide 40 participants with a box of local, in-season produce, for free, on a weekly basis. It will also teach weekly cooking classes and provide cooking utensils and recipes to participants. We will also recruit a set of 40 control participants, whose data will allow a more rigorous assessment of the intervention’s effects.

Community partners

  • Lost River Market & Deli
  • Southern Indiana Community Health Care

Campus partners

  • IU Sustainable Food Systems Science

Counties involved

Crawford, Orange

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