00:00For 11-year-old Pauline Meal, eating fruit and vegetables is a luxury.
00:07The Yiparunya school student says her family can only buy fresh produce sometimes because
00:13it's so expensive.
00:14Because it's like the big family, that's why.
00:18It's a common issue for families at her Alice Springs school.
00:22If you're popping into the supermarkets and, you know, families that are wanting to get
00:26all these veggies, it can actually be quite a massive expense.
00:28It's not only expensive, but the fresh produce is often not so fresh.
00:35Because of the remoteness of a lot of communities, by the time food gets to the communities,
00:42they really lack nutritional content.
00:45Once the students get an idea of how easy it is to grow their own veggies and flowers
00:51and all that stuff, they get a bit more excited.
00:55It's part of a program to increase access to affordable, fresh produce and improve health
01:00outcomes in Aboriginal communities.
01:02A lot of diseases that we're seeing in a lot of remote communities, such as heart disease
01:06and diabetes, they can be prevented by good nutrition.
01:10A community about 300km northeast of Alice Springs has also established its own community
01:16garden.
01:17And Bladderwitch has about 500 people, but about 50% of residents have diabetes.
01:23With produce at the community store very expensive but not very fresh, the nutrition
01:28program has been welcomed with enthusiasm.
01:31A worthy ambition with a delicious end result.
Comments