Nutrition Extension

Through the application of science-based knowledge, the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service creates high-quality, relevant continuing education that encourages lasting and effective change.

The Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service’s Food and Nutrition Unit provides Texans with the knowledge to make healthy and safe food choices.

Whether they prefer to learn in-person or online, we provide Texans with research-based food and nutrition education.

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Nutrition Extension Programs

Better Living for Texans

Better Living for Texans (BLT) is a nutrition education program for adults and children that are Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) participants and SNAP eligible.

The BLT program helps people prepare healthy meals, improve their physical fitness, save money at the grocery store, grow their own foods, and adopt better food safety habits.

Website: Better Living for Texans
Social Media: Better Living for Texans – Facebook
Program Brief: Better Living for Texans Program Brief (PDF)
Contact: Renda Nelson | renda.nelson@ag.tamu.edu

Do Well, Be Well with Diabetes

Type 2 diabetes is a chronic disease. While not curable, it is manageable. Over 2.7 million Texans are diagnosed with the disease; diabetes education provides an opportunity to help people with diabetes understand how to manage their disease through healthy eating patterns, being physically active, and following proper self-care management.

Clients who participate in an evidence-based diabetes education program have shown to delay and prevent further complications associated with type 2 diabetes. Do Well, Be Well with Diabetes is a five week series, developed by the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service Food and Nutrition Unit, to help people with type 2 diabetes learn how to manage their blood glucose through basic nutrition and self-care management.

Topics in the series include: how food affects blood glucose, the proper method to test blood glucose, understand medications, incorporate foods into a healthy eating pattern, and much more.

Enrollment website: Enroll in Do Well, Be Well with Diabetes on AgriLife Learn
Program Outcomes: 2018 Program Outcomes (PDF)
Contact: Heidi Fowler | heidi.fowler@agnet.tamu.edu

Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP)

Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP) of the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service is a flagship nutrition education program funded by USDA’s Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service. Since 1969, EFNEP has worked in local Texas communities providing food and nutrition education to vulnerable limited-resource families and youth.

Today the program is located in ten counties: Bexar, Cameron, Dallas, El Paso, Harris, Hidalgo, Nueces, Tarrant, Travis, and Willacy. Trained EFNEP educators teach basic nutrition, food safety, shopping on a budget, and food preparation skills to clients using hands-on activities and practical, easy-to-understand materials.

Website: Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program
Social Media: Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP) – Facebook
Contact: Chelsea Bishop Smith | clbishop@tamu.edu

Food Protection Management

Food safety education is a critical prevention component for reducing the risk for foodborne diseases. To meet the need for quality and required food safety education in Texas retail food establishments, the Food Protection Management (FPM) program, was developed.

FPM consists of several components, the main two are the Certified Food Manager program, using the curriculum Food Safety: It’s Our Business and the accredited food handler course, Food Safety: It’s In Your Hands. These programs are conducted at the county level by AgriLife Extension agents, as well as online for the food handlers program. Attendees learn key food safety principles such as: use of time and temperature control measures in food service, reducing cross-contamination and personal hygiene to name a few.

Website: AgriLife Extension Food Safety Education
Social Media: FPM – Facebook | FPM – Twitter
Contact, Certified Food Manager program: Rebecca Dittmar | rsdittmar@ag.tamu.edu
Contact, accredited food handler course: Julie Prouse | jprouse@tamu.edu

Life 101

College is hard; life is hard. Most of us need a little help while learning how to transition from living at home to living as an adult on our own: cooking, paying bills, making your own doctor’s appointment. The struggle is real. The basics should be, well… basic. Yet, do you find yourself searching “how to do this” and “how to do that”? LIFE 101 (Learning Info From Extension) does the research for you and offers you access to evidence-based resources and solutions at your fingertips.

What’s the catch? It takes a little time… or at the very least, an email.

Connect with the program: @LIFE101AgriLife on Instagram
Social Media: LIFE 101 – Facebook
Contact: For questions or to request a presentation, contact Carley Carpenter, DTR | carley.carpenter@tamu.edu

Other Nutrition Extension Resources

In addition to our AgriLife Extension programs, members of the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service Food and Nutrition Unit developed online courses, Facebook pages, YouTube videos, and informational graphics (infographics) to reach nontraditional audiences. Online courses offer convenience for clients seeking required professional development opportunities. Professional development courses for food service workers, nutrition educators, and childcare givers were developed. Topics included food safety, child nutrition, obesity as well as other general and trending nutrition topics.

Explore our Educational and Digital Resources

AgriLife Extension Service Family and Community Health Unit

Find an Extension Specialist

We have Extension Specialists across the state, conducting courses and providing resources to help Texans make decisions involving the nutrition and well-being of their families.

Extension Experts

Browse our Resources on AgriLife Learn

We develop top-tier educational content, materials, and multimedia including online courses and publications to help our stakeholders make informed decisions.