by RC Miller, reporter
OMAHA – Food insecurity is an ever-present issue for some Omaha exacerbated by a lack of cooking skills, and access to healthy fresh foods that one local nonprofit is working to address.
No More Empty Pots have been helping feed the community for years by not only serving up meals but also knowledge through their culinary program. Nancy Williams the President and CEO of No More Empty Pots explains how the program attacks many issues at once.
“The lower employment opportunities that we could address the entrepreneurship opportunities that you need in both urban and rural communities to build capacity and self-sufficiency and resilience, so this was our way to connect all of that.”
The program is free to anyone that wishes to join, and all skill levels are welcome explains Meya Hill, a former student of NMEP turned teacher.
“There are people, maybe looking to open their businesses, so this gives them basic skills that might open some doors for them to start their own business.”
Williams explains that if you are working multiple jobs just to make ends meet, taking the time to make something new is a risk. Furthermore, when you are on an extremely tight budget you must make sure that your next meal is something you’re willing to eat.
“What we’re trying to do is take out some of that risk by offering these skills. The opportunity to learn but also exposing to new foods in a way that’s been prepared by people who know how to do it so that they can model it and they can taste it.”Nearly one in eight Nebraskans struggle with food security according to Feeding America.
