In alignment with USDA goals, alaska efnep offers education in the highest need areas in order to solve the most pressing challenges, and serves eligible participants based on federal poverty rates

The Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture awarded the University of Alaska Fairbanks $267,217 on October 1, 2025, under the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (CFDA 10.514), a formula grant supporting nutrition education for low-income families and youth.

The Alaska EFNEP delivers evidence-based nutrition education in high-need areas targeting eligible participants based on federal poverty rates. The program serves the South Central Region (Matanuska Susitna Borough, comprising 53 percent of the state's population), the Fairbanks area (14 percent), and Juneau (4 percent). Education covers the value of nutrient-dense foods and informed purchasing decisions in response to increasing food prices and unstable food supplies in Alaska. The program teaches food safety techniques including produce washing and meat handling, fresh and frozen produce preparation for winter months, and connects participants to community gardens and farmers' markets. Alaska EFNEP reaches clientele through partnerships with non-profit organizations, local leaders, churches, and Title I schools. The program supports USDA goals of protecting food supply efficiency and ensuring healthy and safe food for consumers while helping participants achieve good nutrition and self-sufficiency.

Performance runs through September 30, 2030, with place of performance at Fairbanks, Alaska. UAF serves as the prime recipient through its Grants and Contracts Administration Division, operating under the parent entity University of Alaska Systems.

Efneps audience includes the south central region. More than half of the states population (53%) resides there, which comprises the matanuska susitna (mat SU) borough. Fourteen percent of the population resides in the fairbanks area, and 4% in juneau. In 2017, 81.1% of alaskans were at or above the poverty rate based on 125% of the federal poverty threshold, which is below the 90% goal for healthy alaskans 2020. The poverty rate in 2019 in mat-SU was 9.1%, in fairbanks IT was 8.9%, and in juneau IT was 7.9%. (index mundi). Alaska efnep targets clientele through partnerships with non-profit organizations, local leaders, churches and title i schools. One of usdas major goals is to support production of healthy and safe food for consumers. Alaska efnep plans to continue wisely spending federal dollars to improve the lives of alaskans through enhancing their knowledge of and capacity for achieving good nutrition. Alaskans are experiencing increasing food prices and unstable food supplies. They need education on the value of nutrient-dense foods, providing them with the ability to make informed purchasing decisions. Alaska efneps evidence-based lessons support national goals and encourage positive changes in purchasing, eating and physical activity habits. This helps meet the usdas overall goal of protecting the food supply by ensuring domestic resources are used efficiently. Enfep also educates alaskans on the availability of produce through community gardens and farmers' markets, supporting local farmers. To prepare for alaskas winters, efnep education covers fresh produce options from the store, as well as techniques to utilize canned and frozen produce. Food safety techniques, including the importance of washing hands, washing produce, and handling meat appropriately, are shared to increase production of healthy and safe food for consumers. Efneps efforts support USDA's overall goal of supporting production of healthy and safe food for consumers. Expected outcomes include informed american shoppers improving their health and better utilizing their food budget. Programming outcomes are tracked using pre- and post-surveys logged to the webneers database and tabulated to determine what type of impact is made. The affordable meal goal increased from 17% in FY24 to 40% in f Y25. The hand washing goal increased from 30% in FY24 to 34% in FY25. Alaska efnep will continue to work towards improving percentages each year. Adequate fruit and vegetable consumption is also a pressing challenge. According to the alaska health and social services department in 2019 two out of every three adults in alaska are overweight or obese. Alaska has the 15TH highest adult obesity rate in the nation (biener, adam, ET AL, 2019). Alaska's adult obesity rate in 2019 is 29.5% (america's health rankings), up from 23.5 percent in 2004 and from 15.7 percent in 1995. Efnep outcomes indicate that adults who received programming more than doubled their intake of fruits and vegetables. This trend of eating more produce aligns with state goals of decreasing obesity within alaska.