Healthy Pantry Resources

The Regional Food Bank is committed to helping Oklahomans who are food insecure have access to nutritious foods, giving them the opportunity to lead healthier, more productive lives.

Many food insecure households lack consistent access to healthy foods which can increase the likelihood of developing chronic illnesses such as obesity, heart disease and Type 2 diabetes. The development of a chronic disease coupled with food insecurity creates a vicious cycle for individuals, making it even more difficult to manage disease and escape food insecurity as healthcare expenditures and time required to manage the disease increase.

Healthy Pantry Certification Program

Launched in 2020, the Healthy Pantry Certification Program works to support the Regional Food Bank’s food pantry network utilizing the client choice model. This program helps pantries develop the knowledge and understanding of how healthy and unhealthy food affects individuals living with food insecurity, increases capacity to provide access to fresh fruits and vegetables and creates a food pantry environment that encourages nutritious consumption in support of healthy lifestyles.

Much of this work is done through nutritional nudges, which are environmental cues that encourage the selection of healthier food choices such as fruit, vegetables, whole grains, lean protein and low-fat dairy. Nudge strategies range from placement and presentation to leveraging information offered to clients. The Regional Food Bank partnered with the Oklahoma Nutrition Information and Education (ONIE) Project to collaborate on the development of recipes and nutrition education resources featuring items found at a food pantry.

Feeding America researchers have found that using nudges to make small changes in the food pantry environment can make a big difference in individual food choices. Based on this research, the Regional Food Bank conducted a two-year pilot in partnership with 10 partner food pantries. As a result of the pilot, the Healthy Pantry Certification program was launched to provide lasting and impactful nutrition support to the partner agency network. Certified food pantries receive training program materials, capacity support, ongoing nutrition support and one-on-one coaching from program experts at no cost.

For questions or interest in the Healthy Pantry Certification program, please contact Jessica Ghafil, health and nutrition programs manager, at 405-600-3169 or jghafil@rfbo.org.

Healthy Pantry Resources

Healthy Recipes

• Avocado Black Bean Enchiladas
• Chicken and White Bean Chili
• Easy Skillet Lasagna
• Homestyle Chicken Soup

Nutrition Policy

• Healthy Eating Research Nutrition Guidelines for the Charitable Food System
• Nutrition Environment Food Pantry Assessment Tool
• Nutrition in Food Banking Toolkit
• Regional Food Bank Nutrition Coding One Sheet 2020
• The Power of Nudges – Making the Healthy Choice the Easy Choice in Food Pantries

Program Training and Set Up

• Feeding America Nudge Report
• Healthy Pantry Agency Pre Assessment
• Healthy Pantry Certification Flyer
• Healthy Pantry Certification Objectives
• Healthy Pantry Training 2023

Nutrition Handouts

Request Healthy Pantry Materials

Certified Healthy Pantry partners can click the button below to request Healthy Pantry materials. If you have questions, please contact Sydney Williams at swilliams@rfbo.org.