Healthy Acadia Committed to Continuing Nutrition Education in the Face of Federal Cuts
For Immediate Release
Date: October 10, 2025
Program Contact: Katie Freedman, Healthy Acadia, katie@healthyacadia.org; (207) 664-1541
Media Contact: Tracey Carlson, Healthy Acadia, tracey@healthyacadia.org; (207) 667-7171
Healthy Acadia Committed to Continuing Nutrition Education in the Face of Federal Cuts
On September 30, 2025, the Maine SNAP-Ed program, which has served communities across the state for over 30 years, ended all direct programming and is in the process of ramping down through January. This decision is a result of the elimination of federal funding following the passage of Public Law 119-21, the budget reconciliation bill.
Healthy Acadia has managed this program locally for 12 years, providing nutrition education in schools, childcare facilities, community centers, food pantries, farmers' markets, and more, teaching people of all ages how to shop, cook, and eat healthfully on a budget. This program reached over 2,000 people annually across Hancock and Washington counties, impacting their eating habits, helping them save money on groceries, building confidence around cooking, and improving their overall health.
“Over the past few years, I’ve had the pleasure of delivering Nutrition Education to children in Washington County,” shared Nutrition Educator Shannon Cherry. “Often, when children I’ve worked with see me, they’ll excitedly recall something from our classes or proudly tell me they were a ‘brave taster’ who tried a new fruit or vegetable - phrases we used during our lessons. Moments like these are a true reflection of how the lessons we share continue to resonate.”
The program also supported policy, systems, and environmental change projects that made healthy food more accessible to people across many settings, including food pantries, farmers’ markets, school gardens, and more.
Nutrition Educator Andrea Coffin reflected, “I have been bringing recipes and tastings into food pantries to show individuals what's possible with the food that is already available, while also supporting food pantries in other ways to promote healthy choices. This encourages exploration and cultivates resourcefulness to make healthy food choices.”
Nutrition education is a core component of public health, contributing to the prevention of obesity, chronic disease, and management, as well as increased food and nutrition security, higher consumption of fruits and vegetables, and improved overall well-being. Maine has the highest rate of food insecurity in New England, with 1 in 4 children in Washington County and 1 in 5 children in Hancock County living in food-insecure households.
Food prices are rising faster than wages, and resources to support shopping, cooking, and eating healthy on a budget are more important now than ever. At the same time, federal nutrition assistance programs are being cut, making it even harder for Mainers to access healthy food.
The Maine SNAP-Ed program has been run locally with a $400,000 per year budget and a team of four staff, two Nutrition Educators in both Washington and Hancock counties. Healthy Acadia is committed to continuing to support opportunities for nutrition education across Downeast Maine, and they are looking to raise funds needed to offer these critical services in 2026 and beyond.
“Our goal is to raise $200,000 to support nutrition education for the coming year. This will enable us to maintain our critical nutrition education infrastructure and reach communities broadly across the region with two full-time nutrition educators,” said Julian Kuffler, M.D., MPH, a Healthy Acadia Board Member. “Gifts from the community in any amount will help us continue to provide critical nutrition education services, and we will be able to tailor the programming to the funds received.”
“We are committed to doing everything we can to serve as many people as possible, from the youngest to the oldest, across our communities. We have seen the incredible impacts of this program over the years, and we know how devastating the loss of this programming would be for our communities,” shared Katie Freedman, Healthy Acadia Community Health and Food Programs Director.
“Maintaining even a small core of services will ensure that our systems, partnerships, and expertise are sustained, enabling us to ramp back up fully in the future if and when public funding is restored,” stated Art Blank, Healthy Acadia Board Vice-Chair.
To make a donation in support of this work, community members are invited to give online at bit.ly/HANutritionEdSupport, mail a check to Healthy Acadia, 77 Beechland Rd., Ellsworth, ME, 04605 (please include “Nutrition Education” in the memo line), or contact Shoshona Smith, Healthy Acadia’s Development Director, at shoshona@healthyacadia.org, or by calling 207-667-7171 to have a conversation.
About Healthy Acadia
Healthy Acadia is a 501c3 nonprofit community health coalition working to empower people and organizations to build healthier communities and lives across Washington and Hancock counties. The organization develops partnerships and initiatives that address pressing health priorities, including food security, substance use prevention, chronic disease prevention, and community resilience. For more information, visit www.healthyacadia.org.
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