EFNEP Works — We Are Enrolling Brunswick County Families and Schools Now!
Are you looking for ways to stretch your grocery dollars, prepare healthy meals at home, get your family moving more, and make healthy choices easier?
The Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP) through N.C. Cooperative Extension is currently enrolling Brunswick County families and scheduling youth and school programs for the 2026–2027 school year.
EFNEP offers FREE nutrition education to eligible families and school-age youth. Income guidelines apply.
For more than 50 years, EFNEP has helped North Carolina families and youth build practical skills they can use every day. Here in Brunswick County, that means meeting people where they are — in schools, after-school programs, community organizations, churches, food pantries, recreation programs, summer programs, and other community settings.
What Will Families Learn?
EFNEP isn't about following a diet or being told what you "should" eat. It's about developing real-life skills that work for your family and your budget.
Through EFNEP's Families Eating Smart and Moving More program, participants learn practical ways to:
Plan meals and stretch their food dollars
Shop for healthy foods on a budget
Prepare quick, affordable meals at home
Add more fruits and vegetables to family meals
Read and compare food labels
Choose healthier beverages
Practice food safety
Use leftovers and reduce food waste
Add more physical activity to everyday life
Set realistic goals for themselves and their families
And whenever possible, we don't just talk about food — we get into the kitchen and prepare it together!
No cooking experience is necessary.
Small Changes Can Make a Big Difference
One Brunswick County EFNEP family shared that grocery shopping for their family of five had become expensive and stressful. Through EFNEP, they began planning meals for the week, making one grocery trip instead of several, using their crockpot more often, and planning a leftover night.
Those simple changes helped the family reduce food waste, save time, and make better use of their grocery budget.
That's what EFNEP is all about: small, realistic changes that families can continue long after the classes end.
One Brunswick County EFNEP participant shared:
"I learned very practical exercises to do at home. Also, to include more fruits and vegetables in my diet, and how to read the nutritional value on the labels."
Another family described how meal planning changed their shopping habits:
"Planning our meals for the week and making one trip to the grocery store has helped us save time, cut down on waste, and make better use of what we already have at home."
EFNEP Goes to School!
Some of EFNEP's youngest participants don't come to us — we go to them!
Through 4-H EFNEP, nutrition education can become part of the school day. EFNEP works collaboratively with classroom teachers and enrichment teachers to provide interactive nutrition and healthy-living education while supporting concepts students are already learning in school.
School programs are designed to be active and hands-on. Instead of simply hearing that fruits and vegetables are healthy, students may investigate the five food groups, read food labels, practice food safety, participate in physical activity, prepare or taste a healthy recipe, and learn how everyday choices help their bodies grow and stay healthy.
Programs available through NC EFNEP include grade-appropriate curricula such as Building My Body for third grade, Choosing Foods for Me for fourth grade, and Exploring the Food Groups for fifth grade. These lessons are adapted to align with the North Carolina Healthful Living – Health Education Standard Course of Study for Nutrition and Physical Activity.
For older students, EFNEP offers programs that go beyond basic nutrition and help youth develop practical life skills. Teen Cuisine addresses nutrition, cooking, food safety, and physical activity for grades 6–12, while Fuel for Life combines nutrition education with food preparation, mindful eating and movement, goal setting, smart snacking, eating out, microwave meals, bowl meals, and other skills teens can use as they become more independent.
Working Together With Our Schools
One of the strengths of school-based EFNEP is its flexibility.
In Brunswick County, EFNEP has partnered with classroom teachers, PE/Health teachers, Media Specialists, and enrichment educators to find creative ways to bring nutrition education into the school day.
This collaborative approach allows EFNEP lessons to reinforce what students are already learning while giving them opportunities for hands-on application.
Students aren't just memorizing the five food groups — they're learning questions they can use in real life: What's in my food? How do I read this label? How much sugar is in my drink? How do I safely prepare food? What can I choose for a healthy snack? How can I move more today?
Those are skills that can travel from the classroom to the cafeteria, grocery store, kitchen, and home.
Taking Healthy Lessons Home
The impact can reach beyond the student.
After participating in 4-H EFNEP programming this summer, one Brunswick County caregiver shared that her grandson brought his nutrition lessons home, reminding her:
"We have to eat healthy like Mrs. Angie teaches us... fruits, vegetables, grains, protein, and dairy."
That's one of my favorite parts of EFNEP — watching young people become excited about what they're learning and then share it with the people they love.
During a recent Camp Cook Play program with Randolph House Summer Micro School, students also practiced using their five senses to explore unfamiliar foods. On their final cooking day, they put their new skills to work preparing a meal together.
For some children, success starts with something as simple as being willing to taste a food they've never tried before. For others, it's recognizing MyPlate, washing their hands correctly, choosing water instead of a sugary beverage, reading a food label, or helping prepare dinner at home.Those small steps matter.
Bring EFNEP to Your School or Organization
EFNEP is currently scheduling programming for the 2026–2027 school year.
If you are a teacher, PE/Health teacher, Media Specialist, school administrator, after-school provider, youth program director, or community partner, I would love to talk with you about how 4-H EFNEP could complement what you are already doing.
EFNEP also partners with churches, food pantries, Head Start programs, recreation departments, community organizations, and other organizations serving Brunswick County families.
Programs can be designed around the needs, schedule, and setting of your participants.
Ready to Get Started?
We are enrolling adult participants and scheduling school and community programs now!
If you're interested in joining an adult EFNEP program, referring a family, or bringing 4-H EFNEP or Adult EFNEP to your school or organization, contact:
Angie Lawrence Brunswick County Nutrition Educator / 4-H Program Associate N.C. Cooperative Extension — Brunswick County Center
