Dairy Farmers of Canada (DFC) has launched on online initiative aimed at getting Canadians to create a “family kitchen” in their home in order to encourage their kids to get involved with cooking.
The group, which represents 12,000 dairy farmers across the country, says cooking together enables parents to enjoy one-on-one time with their children while helping them develop crucial life skills.
Kathy Furgala registered dietician and program manager with DFC, said research suggested children are more likely to try new foods, eat better, and build the confidence required to prepare meals and snacks for themselves when welcomed into the family kitchen.
Conceived and maintained by registered dieticians at DFC, the program is built around FamilyKitchen.ca, which provides cooking suggestions, tips and recipes divided into three skill levels: Beginner, intermediate and advanced.
The recipes include family-friendly meals like oven-baked French toast with apples and cinnamon syrup, one pot macaroni and cheese and minestrone soup with mozza croutons.
In a 2012 online study of 600 parents of children between 10 and 12, 25% rated their child’s food skills as poor or very poor, yet teaching their children to cook rated 7.8 out of 10 on the importance scale.
In addition, 63% said they would like to have their children in the kitchen when preparing dinner, while 73% said they would like it if their children could help them cook. The vast majority (86%) indicated food prepared at home was healthier.
The exploration included ethnographic research in which families who cook with children were observed and videotaped.
The organization’s preliminary research suggested parents prefer to learn about the subject from their peers, which is what the instructional videos are meant to address.
DFC is driving to FamilyKitchen.ca with on-air ads, as well as ads in both the print and digital editions of Chatelaine and Today’s Parent. The organization also developed an in-store booklet with Foodland Ontario.
The organization has also enlisted Canadian TV star Jake Goodman (who appears in the Nickelodeon series Max and Shred and Life with Boys) and his father Scott as spokesmen for the initiative.
This article originally appeared at CanadianGrocer.com
