The Better Living for Texans (BLT) program began in 1994 as a cooperative endeavor among the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC), and Food and Nutrition Services (FNS) of USDA. BLT began with 29 pilot counties and has expanded to include every county in Texas served by a Family and Consumer Sciences county AgriLife Extension agent. BLT is a component of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP-Ed) and provides educational programs to SNAP-Ed recipients, applicants, and other approved audiences to help improve their ability to plan and prepare nutritious meals, stretch food dollars, and prepare and store food safely. BLT also provides educational programs that help to improve overall diet quality and increase levels of physical activity.
What Can BLT do for You? By participating in BLT programs, you can learn how to:
- increase your consumption of fruits and vegetables
- choose foods that are relatively inexpensive and good to eat
- make your food dollars last longer
- prepare quick, nutritious meals
- help your children learn how to eat healthier snacks that they will like
- And more!
Our program is committed to helping like you improve your health through providing research-based nutrition education in a friendly, cost-free and relaxed atmosphere.
Our program meets a need because statistics show that 1 out of every 6 Texans struggle with food insecurity and hunger and eat less than the daily recommended allowance of fruits and vegetables. In addition, Texas children and adults are less physically active than recommended.
We’d like to help you make positive, nutritional changes in your life. For more information, contact FCS Agent Lori Garcia at 979-532-3310 or lori.garcia@ag.tamu.edu
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A Fresh Start to a Healthier You! Program series teachers participants how to provide safe, healthy, and economical meals for their families and themselves. A part of the Better Living for Texans (BLT) program, A Fresh Start to a Healthier You! includes research-based lessons that integrate the importance of healthy nutrition with an emphasis on increasing fruit and vegetable intake, physical activity, food safety, and food resource management. The Texas Health and Human Services Commission, the USDA Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, and Food and Nutrition Services sponsor this program. This program is offered at no charge to the participant.
To complement and support each session, participants will take home:
- Support of friends
- Confidence to cook healthy meals for their children and family
- Pocket guide with practical cooking and shopping tips
- Incentive item
- Recipe(s) for success in the kitchen
Contact Better Living for Texans County Extension Agent, Lori Garcia to learn more about the program:
lori.garcia@ag.tamu.edu
Office: 979-532-3310
