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Healthy food choices lead to healthier lives.

Preparing healthy meals can be so challenging.

We know you want healthy meals for your family. You need simple, healthy options; instead, you're bombarded with nutrition claims everywhere you turn. You're unsure what to believe and who to trust. Eating healthy shouldn't be this hard. At Illinois Extension, we take the guesswork out of nutrition. Our educators provide unbiased, research-based information and make it easy to understand. We have nothing to sell, so all you get are the facts. Then, you confidently choose what works for you and the people you love.

You choose how you learn.
Watch a video. Read a blog. Attend a workshop.

  • Food Preservation: Enjoy garden-fresh foods all year by preserving at home. Preservation methods have changed over the years to improve the safety and longevity of stored foods.
  • Food Preparation: Answer 'What's for dinner?" with easy recipes and proven meal plans. From meals tailored for certain health conditions such as diabetes to cooking for families, scope out some easy, nutritious options. 
  • Food Safety: Your family’s health and safety is important, so learn the essentials of preparing, serving, and storing foods from processing meats and produce to storing restaurant leftovers.
  • Food Waste: Ever wondered what else you could do with food waste besides throwing it out? Learn strategies and tips for composting at home.
  • Nutrition: Good health begins with a well-balanced diet. But what exactly does that look like and how does it change over time? Explore options for managing critical nutritional needs for you and your family.
  • Buying Food: Many families spend as much on their monthly food budget as they do on housing. Make your next trip to the grocery store less painful on your wallet.
  • Selling Food: Safety standards ensure that cottage food products are safe, healthy, and enjoyable for all.
News
Nurturing Foundations logo
Learn tips for a healthy pregnancy, toddler nutrition
URBANA, Ill. — The 1,000 days between a person's pregnancy and their child's second birthday offer a unique opportunity to build a healthier and more prosperous future, so knowing how to care for mother and baby during this period is vital. The University of Illinois Extension...
vegetables on a display crate
What is needed to create a long-term sustainable food system for Illinois?
URBANA, Ill. — Illinois food growers, distributors and activists voiced solutions for creating a more resilient and equitable food system in Illinois: support for growers and producers of all experience levels, investment in education and marketing strategies, and advocacy engagement to secure...
Food Protection
Extension offers certified food protection manager course at Heartland
BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – Illinois regulations require food establishments to have at least one Certified Food Protection Manager (CFPM) on staff. University of Illinois Extension offers the Food Protection Manager Certification course and examination, which is required every 5 years. University of...
Workshops

Check out Illinois Extension’s complete offerings