Getting Started with Healthy Eating in Your Recreation Setting was developed to support community members and health promotion partners to take action to create healthier food environments in recreation settings across Ontario. This project was a collaborative effort between the Ontario Society of Nutrition Professionals in Public Health (OSNPPH) and the Nutrition Resource Centre (NRC) at the Ontario Public Health Association (OPHA).
As well, in Ontario we currently have information from two regions: Peel and Niagara.
Peel Public Health
Region of Peel Public Health has a vision where Residents of Peel live in an environment which supports physical activity and healthy eating.
Peel’s Healthy Eating Recreation Organization (HERO) working group has completed a comprehensive program planning and evaluation process. The result is an initial program goal to support municipalities to implement healthy food policy in all recreation facilities.
Presently, HERO is developing partnerships with the City of Brampton and City of Mississauga recreation. The initial focus is to support a shift towards healthy foods served and sold. British Columbia Parks and Recreation has given Peel permission to adapt the Staying Active, Eating Healthy assessment tools.
Ontario Society of Nutrition Professionals in Public Health (OSNPPH)
Healthy Eating Recreation Setting (HERS)
Registered Public Health Dietitians’ in the Ontario have created a HERS working group. Their focus is to address the current nutrition environment in recreation settings as it does not support health.
A comprehensive program planning and evaluation process has been completed. Provincial policy and environmental support for healthy eating in recreation centres does not exist in Ontario. Furthermore, Ontario does not have nutrition guidelines to support healthy eating in recreation. Local Ontario health department support for healthy eating in recreation ranges from data gathering to pilot programs. HERS working group is now considering next steps ranging from developing partnerships for provincial advocacy to ad hoc information sharing. Public Health Dietitians in OSNPPH have created an additional working group to consider the potential to support the creation of harmonized nutrition guidelines for Ontario.
Niagara Region
The Niagara Region has developed information for sports teams called Fuelling Heatlhy Bodies: Healthy Eating Policy for Sports Teams. It includes information targetted specifically to coaches that are downloadable from the site.