An Aboriginal Health Foundation that provides education about nutrition, has established two new vegetable gardens in central Australia. The EON Foundation has seen rates of diabetes decrease in some top end communities after implementing its program, and it hopes to have the same effect further south.
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00:00For 11-year-old Pauline Meal, eating fruit and vegetables is a luxury.
00:07The Yiparunya school student says her family can only buy fresh produce sometimes because
00:13it's so expensive.
00:14Because it's like the big family, that's why.
00:18It's a common issue for families at her Alice Springs school.
00:22If you're popping into the supermarkets and, you know, families that are wanting to get
00:26all these veggies, it can actually be quite a massive expense.
00:28It's not only expensive, but the fresh produce is often not so fresh.
00:35Because of the remoteness of a lot of communities, by the time food gets to the communities,
00:42they really lack nutritional content.
00:45Once the students get an idea of how easy it is to grow their own veggies and flowers
00:51and all that stuff, they get a bit more excited.
00:55It's part of a program to increase access to affordable, fresh produce and improve health
01:00outcomes in Aboriginal communities.
01:02A lot of diseases that we're seeing in a lot of remote communities, such as heart disease
01:06and diabetes, they can be prevented by good nutrition.
01:10A community about 300km northeast of Alice Springs has also established its own community
01:16garden.
01:17And Bladderwitch has about 500 people, but about 50% of residents have diabetes.
01:23With produce at the community store very expensive but not very fresh, the nutrition
01:28program has been welcomed with enthusiasm.
01:31A worthy ambition with a delicious end result.