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In 2014, Texas Health collaborated with the City of Fort Worth and other organizations to launch Blue Zones Project® Fort Worth, a transformative initiative to enhance community health. Implemented through North Texas Healthy Communities (NTHC), Texas Health's outreach arm, the project promoted lasting changes in Tarrant County's infrastructure, policies and social networks, fostering an environment where healthier choices became the norm.
By 2018, Fort Worth had significantly improved its health and well-being, earning certification as the largest Blue Zones Community® in the nation. Since then, NTHC has continued the Blue Zones Project while greatly expanding its well-being efforts and best practices throughout North Texas.
Affiliating with under-resourced schools, faith communities, workplaces and neighborhoods identified by Texas Health's Community Health Needs Assessment, NTHC supports community well-being by fostering equitable and affordable access to healthy foods, promoting mental health, and enhancing literacy success. Texas Health received the Texas Hospital Association’s Excellence in Community Service Award for the improvements it helped facilitate in these areas.
Food and Nutrition Access
According to the North Texas Food Bank, the region has the fourth-highest number of food-insecure people in the nation. About 638,340 individuals are facing hunger and one-third of those are children. More residents need access to fresh, affordable produce and nutritionally rich foods. Beyond hunger, a diet without healthy, nutritious food can compromise immune systems, leading to chronic diseases and declining overall health. NTHC is working to increase nutrition security through:
- Double-Up Food Bucks: The program matches federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits so that individuals can double their buying power when purchasing fresh produce at grocery stores and farmers' markets.
- Good for You Pantry: People can access no-cost produce and other healthy staples at 20 pantries at affiliated schools and community organizations. Each pantry serves 50 to 75 families on average twice a month.
- Fresh Access: Fresh produce is distributed monthly at 21 community centers to youth, families, and seniors who utilize center programs. Nutrition education tools, cooking demonstrations and other family resources are often included.
- Produce Recovery Program: If not sold, perishable foods from grocery stores often end up in landfills instead of being diverted to people in food-insecure areas. This food waste keeps hungry people from being fed and generates extensive greenhouse gas emissions when landfilled. NTHC works with three grocery stores and a compost company to divert thousands of pounds of viable produce from landfills to its Good For You pantries. Produce that is past its prime is delivered to urban farms to be used for compost.
- School gardens: Studies show that school gardens encourage students to eat more fruits and vegetables and are linked to happier moods, lower obesity rates, and healthier habits that last into adulthood. NTHC supports 38 school learning gardens across Tarrant County and provides a gardening consultant who assists with planning, crop selection, planting, cultivation and integrating garden activities into school curricula.
2023 Highlights
NTHC:
- Expanded Double Up Food Bucks to seven additional farmers' markets and food stands with funding from the Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentive Program. Three grocery stores and eight markets completed 34,199 Double Up Food Bucks transactions, providing almost $235,000 in supplemental dollars for fresh fruits and vegetables. Dallas County further contributed $10,000 to offset costs at the Dallas Farmers Market.
- Doubled the Good For You Pantry program from 10 to 20 Fort Worth schools and community-based sites thanks to an American Rescue Plan Act grant of $646,000. The pantries distributed 316,878 pounds of produce to more than 56,000 people throughout the year.
- Enabled more than 42,900 youth, seniors and residents to receive 238,354 pounds of fresh fruit and vegetables through Fresh Access fresh produce distribution across 21 community centers.
- Expanded the Culled Produce Program to additional locations and diverted over 190,000 pounds of produce from landfills. Much of the produce was composted for reuse in urban farms and 38,542 pounds were donated to people in need, up from 13,765 pounds in 2022.
- Conducted six school learning garden builds/makeovers, bringing the total supported to 38. Alcon, Aramark, Building Owners and Managers Association Fort Worth, Fidelity Investments and Atmos Energy provided funding and volunteer support.
Behavioral Health Support
The number of Texans experiencing mental health or substance abuse disorders continues to rise. In response to this pressing issue, NTHC invested in the National Council for Mental Wellbeing's Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) program. Through it, NTHC deploys certified trainers to equip individuals with the skills and knowledge to intervene during crises and provide essential assistance until professional help can be secured.
2023 Highlights
NTHC:
- Coordinated MHFA training at 13 worksites and one community event for 235 participants, bringing the number trained since 2021 to 451.
Literacy and Education
Opening a book can open the door to healthy outcomes for students and their families, including lowering the incidence of depression and increasing the likelihood of high school graduation, employment, preventive care and longevity.
Unfortunately, the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement’s Reading Literacy Study found that 61% of low-income families need books in their homes for children. NTHC teams with Scholastic Book Fairs, Atmos Energy, parent groups and other organizations to introduce children to the joy of reading.
2023 Highlights
NTHC:
- Supported literacy as a social determinant of health by putting 19,654 books in the hands of 9,827 students in underserved areas across four counties and six school districts.
- Hosted 24 Scholastic Book Fairs, including six underwritten by Atmos Energy. The team expanded the events to Arlington, Dallas, McKinney and Plano Independent School Districts.
- Provided 11 classroom sets of Emergent Reader Series books in English and Spanish for 10 school literacy nights.
- Transformed cake walks to book walks at four schools, providing 100 books to each school.
Snapshot: High-Need Communities Receive 1.3+ Million Pounds of Fresh Produce
The program provides free produce and offers nutrition education and support, aiming to overcome barriers to well-being associated with inadequate food access. NTHC works with community organizations to make healthy foods more available. “Solving for food inequities is a community effort, and our work is focused on the neighborhood level — working with trusted organizations like schools and community centers to make the greatest impact,” said Matt Dufrene, vice president of North Texas Healthy Communities. “At the same time, we need to look at the big picture, so we’re working to create better, stronger food systems across the area. That means increasing the locally grown food supply and educating our community about the long-term benefits of healthy eating.” |
Since 2020, North Texas Healthy Communities has distributed over 1.3 million pounds of fresh produce to high-need communities in Tarrant County, benefiting almost 199,000 residents. NTHC's efforts extend beyond immediate hunger relief, recognizing the crucial role of healthy food access as a social determinant affecting long-term health outcomes, especially in children.