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Nonprofit TasteWise Kids Takes Message Of Healthy Eating Online Due To Coronavirus

BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Since 2015, non-profit group TasteWise Kids has been teaching children about food, where it comes from and the importance of healthy eating habits. What used to be time spent in the classroom has turned into lessons online because of the Coronavirus.

Kerry Flanagan, the group's manager of community engagement, said their goal is to make food education fun for kids.

Flanagan knows kids in Baltimore may not be aware how close farming is to them. Without reliable transportation, they may never see it.

That's where TasteWise opens their eyes to a new world of agriculture.

"You hear all kinds of things like, 'Oh, I've never been able to run this far,' things that aren't even really connected to the agriculture that we're trying to teach them about," she said.

Heading online, people can see Chef John Shields from Gertrude's in the Baltimore Museum of Art breaking down easy ways to make a lemon honey vinaigrette salad.

Also on its website are step-by-step instructions and even lesson plans on how to grow your own lettuce with tips from Chef Kiah Gibian, the owner of Wilde Thyme Food Truck.

CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: 

"When your fourth grader is excited and bringing a lesson home from school that's exploring a new kind of food or a new way to eat, then it's contagious," Gibian said.

Less than half of school-age children in Baltimore eat breakfast every day and 38 percent of adolescents eat vegetables less than once daily, meaning the group's work is cut out for them.

Flanagan said their efforts doesn't stop there.

"We're also raising money to distribute salad kits to underprivileged families in the area so they can enjoy a healthy meal for a family of four at home," she said.

Salad can be much more than lettuce. The possibilities going forward are endless. Thanks to this non-profit, the lessons online are free.

It takes $15 donation to give a salad kit to a Baltimore student and their family. For more on how to donate, click here.

For the latest information on coronavirus go to the Maryland Health Department's website or call 211. You can find all of WJZ's coverage on coronavirus in Maryland here.

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