NHS Norfolk’s Joy of Food team will be visiting supermarkets across Norfolk during April and May as part of a Change4Life & Joy of Food roadshow.

The Joy of Food, which is Lottery-funded, will take a team to various supermarkets to promote both their own and Change4Life initiatives, including quick and easy meal ideas, healthier snack swaps and answer questions from members of the public about food labels. Members of the team will also be promoting seasonal vegetables and finding out how many people take a shopping list when they visit the supermarket.

The roadshow kicks off on Wednesday, April 7th, and will see the Joy of Food team operating stands at the supermarkets, to provide information and advice to people who want to find out about practical shopping and cooking advice. The team is aiming to help people to plan their shopping around their meals, try out new recipes and swap some of their snacks for healthier alternatives.

Caroline Seaman, NHS Norfolk’s Food and Nutrition Lead and Joy of Food Manager, is organising the roadshow and commented: “We are really pleased to have this opportunity to speak to people when they are thinking about food as they do their shopping. We will be setting up a gazebo at various supermarkets, either inside or in the car park and will be encouraging people to talk to us about their shopping habits, discuss how they could make healthy changes to their meals or snacks and discuss new recipe ideas.

“The roadshow also allows us to promote some of the key Change4Life messages, like swapping sugary snacks for healthier alternatives, reducing portion size to suit the individual and easy ways to get your 5 A DAY.

“But we also want to be a resource to help people or answer their questions, for example if they want to find out more about seasonal fruit and vegetables, how to compare the nutritional content figures on food labels, or to find out how they can reduce the amount of food they throw away.

“We are very grateful to the supermarkets who are hosting us and hope more may come on board over the next few weeks too. The Joy of Food team will be wearing 5 A DAY t-shirts on the day, so if you see them, stop us and ask your question!”

The team will also be offering some interactive food demonstrations and tasting sessions, to show people some simple but nutritious recipe ideas they could try at home.

Caroline added: “I hope people make the most of this opportunity to get one-to-one advice about their food choices and diet. We will be able to help people choose alternative snacks and meals, or new recipes which include their favourite foods. If the roadshow is successful, we may look to develop a similar tour in the future.

“We would also like to offer individuals the opportunity to sign up to the Joy of Food programme and will be accepting contact details from anyone who wants to learn some basic cooking skills to make choosing a healthier diet easier.”

For more information about the Joy of Food, and to see which supermarkets are taking part in the tour, go to: www.norfolk.nhs.uk/yourhealth/joy-of-food/index.html

Full details of Joy of Food roadshow:
– Please note, all events run from 9.30am to 2.30pm –

April 7th – Sainsbury’s, Attleborough – High Street
April 8th – Sainsbury’s, King’s Lynn – Vancouver Centre
April 13th – Tesco, Aylsham – 28 Norwich Road
April 20th – Morrison, Norwich – Albion Way
April 23th – Budgens, Cromer – High Street
April 29th – Tesco, Fakenham – Oak Street
May 14th – Tesco, King’s Lynn – Hardwick Road
May 15th – Budgens, Holt – 6 Kerridge Way