Galway City Partnership is one of 13 community projects to be awarded a share of €740,000 in safefood funding to transform the shopping and healthy eating habits of low-income communities across the country.
safefood is investing in the projects over the next three years as part of its Community Food Initiatives (CFI ) Programme 2022-2024 to help the participants to set up, manage, and sustain their work.
The programme aims to positively influence healthy eating habits by supporting the development of skills and knowledge around food, healthier shopping, and cooking skills.
“The work of community food initiatives has never been more important," said Ray Dolan, chief executive safefood. "We face rising food and living costs and the pressure that puts on low-income families in eating a healthy, balanced, diet while meeting other essential household expenses. The projects joining our CFI programme put healthy eating on the agenda in local communities and can improve family health, tackle inequality, and change people’s lives for the better. By focusing on skills and knowledge in relation to food, this can have a transformative effect on families across the island of Ireland.”
Declan Brassil, CEO Galway City Partnership, added: “As a CFI leader, we will continue to promote learning of new skills and knowledge of nutrition and cooking among families living in Galway city. Our aim is to encourage social connection within communities centring around healthy eating and the sharing of cooking and meals.”
The CFIs will be administered at a local level by South & East Cork Area Development (SECAD ) CLG.
“We are delighted that safefood has entrusted us with the role of coordinator for the Community Food Initiative (CFI ) 2022-24," said Ryan Howard, chief executive of SECAD. "We have designed the CFI in a manner that fits well within existing local development structures and supports. The programme will be delivered by a group of projects – four in Northern Ireland and nine in Republic of Ireland - who have identified how they can maximise the impact of the Community Food Initiative in their areas. Each project itself provides an exemplar for others to follow, and these can inform safefood in terms of inputting into current and future policy development on the island of Ireland.”
For more information on the Community Food Initiatives (CFI ) Programme 2022-2024 visit www.safefood.net/community-food-initiatives
