Former Nutrition Educator Lauren Hansen Helped Hunger Task Force Become the First MyPlate Focused Food Bank
50 Faces. 50 Stories. 50 Years of Fighting Hunger.
Hunger Task Force is proud to be Milwaukee’s only Free & Local food bank and Wisconsin’s anti-hunger leader. In celebration of our 50th Anniversary, Hunger Task Force is highlighting “50 Faces of Ending Hunger,” honoring the anti-hunger heroes who champion Free & Local and support our mission to end hunger.
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With a longstanding passion for food and working with kids, Lauren Hansen joined Hunger Task Force as the nutrition educator in 2014. During her time at Hunger Task Force, she played a pivotal role in shaping how the organization provides food to its network partners and teaches children about healthy eating.
“I helped expand what was provided to families through government programs like Stockbox and the emergency food program network by increasing the number of fruits and vegetables to align with the guidelines for Americans through the USDA so Hunger Task Force can supply enough healthy food to fuel families,” said Lauren. “Hunger Task Force is the first MyPlate-focused food bank. It brings me so much joy to see a company billboard promoting MyPlate and remember that I helped develop that.”
The Hunger Task Force MyPlate is a healthy model that showcases the five main food groups – fruits, vegetables, protein, dairy and grains – on a plate. It encourages people to eat healthy foods by choosing the right types and amounts.
Lauren’s mark on the community doesn’t stop there. As the Nutrition Educator, she created MyPlate-focused lessons and provided interactive learning so low-income students would have comprehensive experiences that teach them to make informed food choices and sharpen their skills in the kitchen. Through Lauren’s programming, students learned how to grow, harvest and cook with fresh produce. Her lessons were created to teach kids where food comes from, how to make healthy food choices and just how much fun cooking healthy meals can be.
“I built the curriculum, and it allowed me to give students, who otherwise wouldn’t have likely received it, the opportunity to learn about and cook with fresh fruits and vegetables,” adds Lauren. “I was recognized for this work by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics with a Mary Abbott Hess Award for an innovative food or culinary effort.”
Lauren was inspired to become a dietician from her experience in the kitchen as a child – talking with family around the kitchen counter and enjoying a healthy meal in this coveted space in her childhood home. Through that, she continues to cultivate and foster a really positive relationship with food from a physical and social standpoint. Throughout her career, she works to help others feel that same sense of food security.
Now serving as a dietitian at Children’s Wisconsin, her work at Hunger Task Force has impacted how she practices in a clinical setting. One important lesson she took with her is to get on the level of your audience to be able to best understand them.
Meet the 50 Faces of Ending Hunger!
Click below to discover real people making a difference in the fight against hunger – new faces added each month! As we journey through our 50th year, keep checking back to meet more incredible individuals making a difference.