Lucy’s Tasty Treasures will be aired on SC ETV on the school broadcast station throughout the state this Fall. This will enable classrooms in every county to tune in to the program at specified times this semester. We are very excited about the level of accessibility this will afford. Many more classrooms will now be able to integrate Lucy’s into their health and nutrition education.

More on Lucy’s Tasty Treasures from their website:

The program was developed by Katherine Cason, professor and state program leader for food safety and nutrition, to help combat the obesity epidemic. It follows Cason’s daughter, Melissa, who plays Lucy in the show, on a treasure hunt to locate and learn about healthy foods, such as fruits and vegetables, dairy and whole grains. Other actors include Emory and Georgia Childress, Rosio Antunez, Mary Lewis and Clemson University students and faculty, Sergio Nieto Montenegro, Rachel Harris, Marta Gamboa, Mercedes Rossi and Yenory Hernandez.

The Telly Awards honor the very best local, regional, and cable television commercials and programs, as well as the finest video and film productions, and work created for the Web. The 29th Annual Telly Awards received over 14,000 entries from all 50 states and 5 continents.

Lucy’s takes a farm-to-table approach to promote healthful eating and physical activity is being offered to elementary schools this year through DVDs, family newsletters, student activity books and photo-novellas.

The curriculum is being used in 30 percent of South Carolina schools, with orders from approximately 100 teachers in nine other states. It is also used by Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program educators in more than 260 schools and by the non-profit Zest Quest® children’s health initiative in 14 schools. Additional information, recipes, games, a blog, and order form for the DVDs are on this website.

You can now catch both video and audio only versions of Lucy’s Tasty Treasures on iTunesU - Clemson University. You can get into Clemson’s iTunesU without a login and still access dozens of podcasts based on Lucy and healthy eating for free.

Many podcasts are available in both English and Spanish.

All podcasts are free and you can subscribe so that you’ll get automatic updates on newly posted podcasts.

iTunes is a free program and works on both Macs and PCs. It can be downloaded from the Apple website.

Lucy’s Tasty Treasures won two bronze Telly Awards during the 2008 season for outstanding film/video in the health and wellness category and for outstanding promotional piece in the health and fitness category.

Galatia Films writes, produces, shoots, and edits these episodes in conjunction with Dr. Katherine Cason of the Depart of Food Science and Human Nutrition at Clemson University. These are very prestigious awards and we are happy to be such an integral part of Lucy’s Tasty Treasures.

Lucy’s also won two other awards presented by the Professional Nutritional Society this month.

The Southeast Produce Council & EFNEP Partners in Better Health

Obesity is a modern day epidemic that affects all facets of society, including children. The prevalence of obesity in children has nearly quadrupled over the past 30 years. Research has shown that childhood obesity commonly tracks into adulthood. More than 20% of children are obese by the time children they reach middle school.

Fruits and vegetables play a critical role in the etiology and treatment of several chronic diseases, including obesity. Americans are encouraged to consume five or more servings of fruits and vegetables each day. However, according to the NHANES, children ages 6 to 11 consume an average of 2.1 vegetables and 1.4 fruits per day. Therefore, a nutrition education program Lucy’s Tasty Treasures was developed with the goal of building awareness and appreciation of fruits and vegetables; and, increasing their consumption.

Lucy’s Tasty Treasures is a television series shown in schools and on SCETV with an innovative blend of education and entertainment. The main character, Lucy, is on a summer assignment, a Treasure Hunt, to locate and learn about fruits and vegetables. Lucy, accompanied by her younger brother, Austin, travels throughout the Southeast, visiting farms, food industries, retail establishments and other sites related to fruits and vegetables. On her trips, Lucy often encounters Charlotte, a classmate who has the same assignment. Taking a “farm to table” approach, Lucy’s Tasty Treasures also includes segments that show Lucy and her Mom in their home kitchen with the fruits and vegetables Lucy learned about on her trips. Lucy and Mom prepare quick and easy, kid-friendly recipes while discussing nutritional content and food handling practices of the fruits and vegetables.

Prior to program development, three focus group interviews were conducted with 29 children to assess their knowledge about nutrition, and fruits and vegetables. The results were utilized to develop the key educational messages. During the development process, three additional focus group interviews were conducted with 22 children to gather information about educational activity design, format, and characters. Viewer responses have been overwhelming and positive. Preliminary data from 76 students who completed a pretest and posttest indicates that the majority acquire knowledge and skills related to fruit and vegetables and nutrition.

The Lucy’s Tasty Treasures program also includes Tasty Bites segments that are 1-2 minutes in length. These segments are taped in a laboratory, kitchen or outdoors and are designed to educate about different nutrition, diet and health messages. These segments can be used as “teasers” at the beginning of educational classes or can be shown during the morning announcements in schools. Lucy’s Tasty Treasures has supplementary materials including a Teacher’s Guide that supports and extends the learning opportunities and a web site containing video segments, games, recipes, podcasts, and a blog for students.

Clemson Educator Uses Show to Promote Healthy Eating in Children

Anderson School District 4 Uses Episodes

By Evelyn Beck/Special to the Independent-Mail
Thursday, September 27, 2007

CLEMSON UNIVERSITY — Collards as an alternative to potato chips? Children who watch a new series of DVDs called “Lucy’s Tasty Treats” just might think so.

Developed by Clemson University food science and human nutrition Professor Katherine Cason, the series uses a “farm to fork” approach, taking viewers through the entire food production process. There’s also lots of advice about healthy meals and snacks kids can make.

“Kids are more inclined to taste and consume foods they learn more about and help prepare,” said Cason, who filmed one show at a Lexington collard farm.

Children also are more receptive to nutritional messages from their peers. So the stars of “Lucy’s Tasty Treats” are fifth- and sixth-graders, including Cason’s daughter, Melissa.

“Lucy’s Tasty Treats” is being used in 30 percent of South Carolina schools, including Anderson District 4.

With funding from the Southeast Produce Council and Clemson University, it was developed to help schools fulfill a requirement for at least one hour of nutrition education per week, part of federal and state mandates related to school wellness policies. This legislation is a response to the epidemic of childhood obesity, a special concern in South Carolina, which ranks fifth nationally in the percentage of citizens who are overweight.

Each episode of the show lasts 30 minutes, though there are also related two-minute spots. So far, Ms. Cason and her crew have completed six of the longer episodes and 20 of the shorter ones. The goal is to film 36 of each.

One of the shorter segments helps children make better beverage choices by showing that a glass of soda contains 26 teaspoons of sugar in comparison to a glass of milk, which has no added sugar, plus a lot of nutrients not available in soft drinks.

Ms. Cason is convinced that “Kids, if given the right information, can make the better choices.”

Another show stresses the importance of eating breakfast and offers such nontraditional ideas as breakfast pizza (a pizza crust topped with cream cheese or peanut butter plus fresh fruits). Other topics include the importance of hand washing and the need to get one hour of physical activity daily.

For more information about “Lucy’s Tasty Treats,” contact Ms. Cason at kcason@clemson.edu or visit Lucy’s Tasty Treasures official website.

The new promotional video for Lucy’s Tasty Treasures has now been released and can be watched online. This video reveals the actors and actresses thoughts on being a part of the project while also exploring the necessity of the shows message to children.

Lucy’s Tasty Treasures Promotional Video