Published on 08/02/18

New UGA SNAP-Ed website provides online nutrition education for low-income populations

By Austin Childers

University of Georgia Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Education (SNAP-Ed), which offers Georgians free, online nutrition education classes known as “Food eTalk,” has launched a newly revamped website at https://www.foodtalk.org/.

Developed by faculty and staff from the UGA College of Family and Consumer Sciences (FACS) and UGA Cooperative Extension, the newly redesigned website offers a new and improved user experience. Food eTalk users can now enjoy more guidance and control over their online learning experiences.

“We wanted to build a secure, long-lasting and functional website that not only met our current needs, but also would be able to scale to meet future functionality and usage requirements,” said Ryan Frith, web developer principal for UGA SNAP-Ed. “We also made improvements to the user experience to give website visitors optimal experiences when viewing our website on desktop, mobile phone and tablet devices and to make user interaction with our website easy and intuitive.”

The new website has a modern design and added functionality for users to manage their contact preferences and learning experiences. A new dashboard feature notifies users of any unfinished tasks in online learning courses, has new social media integrations and makes signing up easier.

“We had several goals for the website redesign,” said Edda Cotto-Rivera, UGA SNAP-Ed program coordinator. “I think users are really going to like some of our new features. For example, recipes are laid out in a pinboard-style, so browsing our collection is fun. The addition of a dashboard is also a game changer for Food eTalk.”

Food eTalk was developed by UGA SNAP-Ed for Georgians eligible for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), but is open to all Georgia residents interested in free ideas on how to eat healthy and live an active lifestyle on a budget.

“We are excited about the new website’s launch,” said Jung Sun Lee, a professor in the FACS Department of Foods and Nutrition who serves as principal investigator for UGA SNAP-Ed. “Improvements are the results of feedback we’ve received from users over the years. UGA Extension employees also helped in the development and review process, and we’re very proud of what we have developed.”

Those interested in Food eTalk classes may enroll for free at www.foodtalk.org.

This material was funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s SNAP. This institution is an equal opportunity provider.

Austin Childers coordinates UGA SNAP-Ed statewide social marketing efforts.

Authors:

Austin Childers

Experts/Sources:

Edda Cotto-Rivera

The University of Georgia Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Education (SNAP-Ed) has launched a newly revamped website. Known as “Food eTalk,” the program offers Georgians free, online nutrition education classes.

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