June 21, 2018
KAP State Member for Hill Shane Knuth has again backed the Queensland Country Women’s Association, advocating for the continuation of the successful Country Kitchens Program for another 12 months.
Funding for the program, which has been in place for 3 years, was initially heavily lobbied for and secured by KAP members Shane Knuth and Robbie Katter.
“It is a fantastic program, made up of 155 volunteers and trained nutritionists, who have spread the healthy eating message to over 80 communities and travelled over 100,000km across regional and remote Queensland.”
“The program teaches parents about a healthy eating lifestyle and how to prepare nutritional, healthy food so they can take those lessons back to their communities and homes. It’s important we deliver this strong message to kids at an early age so they develop good eating habits.”
Mr. Knuth said he raised the issue with Minister for Health Steven Miles on behalf of QCWA.
‘I thank the Minister for his support for what I believe is a very valuable program for the health of our communities.” Mr. Knuth said.
“Congratulations to Fiona McKenzie and her team on their hard work so far. I look forward to seeing the results over the next 12 months of the program.”
State Program Manager, Fiona McKenzie said she was excited about the positive support received from QCWA members and their communities to tackle this huge health problem and their willingness to promote healthy eating.
“Thank you to Shane and Minister Miles for their wonderful continued support of the program. The QCWA is perfectly placed to make lasting changes within their communities. They are an integral part of life in our country towns”, Ms. McKenzie said.
Country Kitchens program capitalises on the cooking prowess of the QCWA members, ensuring tasty and nutritious meals are easily cooked at home.
The funding extension will build on the nutritional and community capacity building gains achieved over the past three years, to enable a range of health promotion initiatives to be delivered by the QCWA members.