At this time of year, food markets will benefit by hosting a nutritional education program for their patrons, and you'll be working to create healthier people! There are many different approaches to educating your customers, one for every budget and type of store. This article is designed to help you pick a program that's right for you and your patrons, as well as inspire you to develop your own ideas!

Shelf labeling, courtesy of local university food programs
Around the country, many health, fitness and nutrition departments at universities participate in community education programs. For example, the University of Michigan provides a shelf-labeling service in conjunction with a number of the local food markets. In this program, products are color coded - either green or yellow - on the shelf under the item. Green labels give consumers the "green light" to enjoy these products as part of their regular diet; yellow labels suggest moderation.

Is there a university with a program like this in your area? Check around! The recommendations of a university suggest research and impartiality, qualities respected by consumers.

Personal trainers
Personal trainers not only know exercise, but they're usually knowledgeable in nutrition as well! Team up with a local trainer, and allow the trainer to provide tours (individual or group) through your store to better educate your customers on the different food choices. Personalized tours might be more time consuming, but there is a good chance they might also be more effective, since every individual has different needs, capabilities and metabolism. This is an opportunity to develop loyal, long-term relationships with your customers!

There are gyms everywhere. Check with one to see if you can work with one of their personal trainers. You might even be able to work together on this program and split the costs of advertising. Also be sure to check the yellow pages for independent trainers, too; they may have more flexibility with their schedule.

In-store demos/cooking classes
This is one area where you have a lot of room for creativity. Why not set up a schedule of weekly demos for the next six to eight weeks, at a time that is convenient and likely to draw a lot of walk-by attention? Each week, feature a different product mix in the demo: organics, diabetic-friendly fare, low-fat, low-carb, vegetarian ‹ there are many possibilities! Food and cooking demonstrations also allow you the opportunity to bring in local cooks, farmers, nutritionists, who will be able to help provide interesting and educational messages for your customers. It's also a great chance to showcase the talents of your store's cooks and bakers.

You can combine demos with other promotions. Attendees can receive an additional percentage off their orders; you can promote your store's cookbook, if you have one; you can encourage your patrons to sign up for your other nutritional education programs. Keeping people in your store and getting them to come back for non-shopping activities will help increase your overall sales!

Nutrition classes
Nutrition classes are similar to trainer tours and cooking demos, but will explore the nuts and bolts of food in greater depth. Again, there's a lot of flexibility with this program. You can hold weekly classes as with the food and cooking demo and focus on the special interests and needs of these diverse groups.

Many hospitals offer free educational programs; specialists in diet and nutrition present topical lectures for the community. Team up with one of the hospital's specialists and hold the presentation at your food store. It's the logical choice, because people can go shopping immediately after the lecture, with the new information fresh in their minds, and the literature right in their hands. They can ask the specialist questions, based on items they see in your store - questions that might not have been asked at the community center!

Grade School Field Trips
Get 'em young! Become a destination for grade school field trips! Lowes Foods, based in North Carolina, has a program called "Be a Smart Shopper" in which students and teachers are invited into the stores to learn about good nutrition, healthy snacks, cooking and correct portion sizes. Last year, the Lowes program had 15,000 children and 2,500 teachers in their stores; the program has an impressive list of sponsors (government agencies, non-profit organizations, and food manufacturers).

There are a number of successful national programs out there, and there are many stores currently participating in them. Check around and get your program going right away! Kids love the field trips, because food is something they all can relate to. This is a perfect word-of-mouth opportunity for you, too: the students take a tour of your store, and tell their parents about it. The parents are likely to come back to find out more about the program and the foods the children learned about on the trip. They'll be even more likely to return if you send the students home with coupons and literature!

Obesity Prevention Programs
Obesity is a complex problem: we've developed inseparable bonds with our TVs and computers and we've filled much of the open space with shopping malls and condominiums. The problem is endemic among children as well - they're not exercising as much as they did 20 years ago, and are eating larger portion sizes. What's particularly distressing is that there are more than 300,000 deaths per year that can be directly attributed to obesity. Because of this, many federal, state and local agencies have developed obesity prevention programs, and they're growing in popularity all over the country, primarily in schools, but also in community centers and hospitals.

Find out what's available in your area. It might involve a simple call to the local school, hospital or community center. Host an obesity prevention activity at your store.

We live in an age where there is so much choice and while most of the food options available are good, many people struggle with these choices. This struggle can be seen as the number of preventable diseases continues to rise. But there are many programs available to help people eat healthier, and by participating in a program that works for your store, it will help you better serve the needs of your customers. This is a fantastic opportunity to team up with community leaders in the hospitals and schools and really make a difference in people's lives. It is, of course, good PR for your store, as well. Grocery industry research shows that if your store has offerings that are in line with the interests and beliefs of your customers, they'll come back consistently to you, so nutritional programs are a great way to develop a loyal base of patrons.

Photo by Dena O'Hara.