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Sandra May and Randy LaBauve
Eating healthily can be a challenge for many people, but having limited food dollars and access to nutritious foods can make it even more difficult. Since 2019, the LSU AgCenter and Louisiana Healthcare Connections, one of Louisiana's Medicaid providers, have partnered to create the Build a Healthy Meal video project.
These videos show how to prepare budget-friendly, tasty and nutritious meals while keeping Louisiana’s unique food culture, commodities and flavors in mind. This initiative provides a valuable resource for Nutrition and Community Health agents, nutrition educators and participants of our nutrition education programs. While many standardized recipes are available from websites and cooperative extension services across the country, they do not reflect Louisiana's culinary traditions.
The primary goal of this project is to offer easy, healthy and tasty recipes for individuals with limited resources, fostering confidence in planning and preparing nutritious meals at home using basic ingredients and kitchen equipment. These recipes feature common ingredients that can be purchased at local dollar stores, farmers markets or small supermarkets. Some videos also include ingredients frequently available at food pantries, food banks and in commodity distribution boxes. The kitchen equipment used in the videos consists of common household tools, and substitutions for ingredients and equipment are demonstrated. Each video not only showcases the featured recipe but also includes components of a complete meal based on U.S. Department of Agriculture MyPlate nutrition guidelines.
NCH agents from all three program areas — the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Education (SNAP-Ed), the Expanded Food and Nutrition Educational Program (EFNEP) and Flavors of Health — across the state are invited to host the videos. This involvement helps drive NCH program participants to the videos and other resources on the LSU AgCenter website.
The videos are categorized into several themes:
The newest additions to the collection features kid-friendly recipes and are hosted by middle and high school students from across the state who are part of 4-H or the TeenChef program along with their NCH agents. The aim is to show how children can participate in preparing healthy, nutritious meals with minimal adult supervision.
Since its inception, the project has produced 38 videos, achieving nearly 30,000 views. Companion recipe cards are distributed at public events such as farmers markets and food demonstrations and in nutrition education programs. The project has been renewed four times, reflecting its success and impact as well as a strong partnership with Louisiana Healthcare Connections.
In a combined effort, the LSU AgCenter Communications unit handles videography and editing as well as recipe card design for the project. Expertise in the LSU AgCenter and relevant experience ensures high production quality of the videos and companion recipe cards.
Funding from Louisiana Healthcare Connections has supported an undergraduate student intern position for this project. To date, four dietetic students have assisted with the project, with three former interns being accepted into their first-choice dietetics programs and receiving awards for their outstanding work. The student interns play a crucial role in the project. They gain unique experience in nutrition, recipe development and analysis, script writing, video production and editing, and social media management.
The Build a Healthy Meal videos have been utilized in ways not initially anticipated. They are used as tools in nutrition education programs and help promote Louisiana commodities, including sweet potatoes, pecans, rice, catfish and shrimp. Those videos featuring Louisiana commodities are featured in video loops at the Louisiana Capitol for tourists to view. During the LSU AgCenter’s Louisiana Charitable Foods Summit in May 2023, USB data storage drives containing videos were distributed to representatives from food banks and food pantries across the state, where they are displayed on monitors in their facilities.
Video loops are also used at LSU AgCenter fair exhibits, with agents providing companion recipe cards to attendees. Many recipes are included in the NCH Simple and Nutritious calendar, with QR codes linking back to the videos.
The videos are available on the LSU AgCenter website at LSUAgCenter.com/BuildaHealthyMeal along with a printable version of the recipe. Videos are posted on Pinterest and Instagram social media networks under the @BuildAHealthyMeal handle. Links to the videos are shared with SNAP-Ed and EFNEP and posted on LSU AgCenter Facebook pages and webpages. QR codes on written materials link back to the Build a Healthy Meal webpage on the LSU AgCenter website.
Sandra May is a registered dietitian and instructor with AgCenter Nutrition and Community Health, and Randy LaBauve is a videographer, video editor and writer in AgCenter Communications.
This article appeared in the winter 2025 issue of Louisiana Agriculture.
A stir fry made with ramen noodles was a popular recipe on the Build a Healthy Meal video series. Photo by Ruthie Losavio
LSU AgCenter NCH agent Jennifer Duhon, right, and Morgan, a teen chef from Rapides Parish, made three sisters soup for a Build a Healthy Meal video. Photo by Ruthie Losavio
