In your community, what is the biggest challenge to healthy eating?

Thanks for your support, with your help, we've already helped Share Our Strength's Cooking Matters® Colorado raise over $30,000! Now it's time to help the Kashi REAL Project™ and Cooking Matters finish strong and achieve the $35,000 goal* by inviting your friends to get involved.

In Kashi's recent poll many people listed the cost of fresh produce and other nutritional food options as one of the main barriers to healthy eating. That's why Kashi has teamed up with organizations like Cooking Matters Colorado, who are working to educate low-income families across Colorado how to budget, shop for, and prepare healthy meals at home. Through hands-on courses with volunteer chefs and nutrition educators Cooking Matters teaches families how to cook and eat healthier on a budget.

Your participation will have an impact and help those in need.  Just $25 provides Cooking Matters Colorado with class supplies for a family of four, while $100 pays for a supermarket tour for up to 10 families.

Visit the Cooking Matters Colorado website to learn more about how the group is using education to combat the Real Food Deficit.

*For every poll response on www.causes.com/healthyeating, Kashi will donate $1 dollar, up to a maximum of $35,000, to Share Our Strength's Cooking Matters® Colorado. The donation status will be updated instantaneously. Limit one poll response per Causes.com user. There is a strict limit of one entry per person. If it becomes apparent that a participant is using a computer(s) to circumvent this rule or any other automated or programmed means, any donation will be void. The program will begin at 12:00am ET 1/29/13 and ends at 11:59 pm ET 3/31/13 or until the maximum donation is reached. Cooking Matters Colorado will receive a minimum donation of $10,000. Must be a registered Facebook user to participate. This program is published by Causes.com, which is solely responsible for its content. No purchase necessary. Void where prohibited.

We've all been there -- at the end of a long workday; making a nutritious meal from scratch can feel daunting. Sometimes, it just feels easier to grab a quick, and often less healthy, alternative rather than cook at home.

Time, access, expense, and lack of basic cooking skills are just a few of the barriers to healthy eating that many of us face in our day-to-day lives. The Kashi REAL Project™ is trying to address some of these barriers for low-income families by teaming up with Share Our Strength's Cooking Matters® Colorado, a non-profit organization that specializes in educating kids and families about healthy eating on a limited budget.
Here are some quick tips from Cooking Matters:

1. Time: When you're able, cook meals in bulk and save leftovers for a future lunch or dinner by refrigerating or freezing them within 2 hours after cooking.

2. Expense: If fresh produce costs too much or isn't available where you shop, look for frozen vegetables as a potential alternative. Just be sure to avoid any that have added salt or preservatives.

3. Convenience: Try making yogurt parfaits the night before or sauté veggies to add to scrambled eggs in the morning. 

You can support Cooking Matters Colorado by inviting your friends and family to think about healthy eating by taking Kashi's poll. For every response another $1 is donated to Cooking Matters Colorado (up to $35,000) to help educate kids and families about healthy eating!*