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Local Voices

CABOT® CREAMERY OFFERS FREE HEALTH MATERIALS TO CORPORATE WELLNESS PROGRAMS, COMMUNITY GROUPS AND SCHOOLS

Dairy Cooperative Offers Help for Health Fairs, Webinars, Workshops, Schools, Businesses and Community- and Faith-Based Programs

Those New Year’s resolutions for a healthy lifestyle were made with the best of intentions.  Then came the hard part: Keeping them.

As we pass the midpoint of the year, it’s time to renew those commitments, and Cabot® Creamery Cooperative can lend a hand. Because it’s never too late to get healthier.

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To help keep consumers educated and motivated about health, Cabot offers no-cost wellness programs and materials to schools, businesses, community organizations and faith-based groups. This support is available for free on a first-come, first-served basis, as resources permit.

Cabot’s product line currently includes light cheeses and Greek-style lowfat yogurts that have been recommended by dietitians, diabetes educators and chefs for both nutrition and taste. The dairy cooperative continues to expand its healthy choices with these outreach programs.

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Cabot partners with employers by providing educational materials for company websites, bulletin boards, employee kitchens and break rooms. Webinars, workshops and healthy lifestyle competitions can also help encourage healthy living.

The free information can be utilized in health fairs, wellness programs, women’s retreats, community-wide events, bazaars, coffee hours and mobile ministries. Materials include information on diabetes, weight loss, lactose-free and gluten-free diets, plus coupons and recipes.

Age-appropriate materials are available to help young people learn healthy habits with the aid of coloring books and prizes and through special lesson plans offered to interested teachers. The school materials also include a bone health education patch program for teens, as well as free curriculum kits on bone health for teachers to use in the classroom.

 “We want to support and encourage healthy lifestyles on all levels,” says Regan Jones, Registered Dietitian and Cabot Creamery Cooperative’s National Nutrition Communications Manager. “We want adults and seniors to know that it’s never too late to start living healthier lives. And we want to help teachers and parents show children that it’s never too early to start.”

Informational and motivational offerings that Cabot can provide include:

· Health fair and fundraiser support with light cheddar samples and snacks, educational materials, healthy recipes, coupons and door prizes.

·  Weight loss, diabetes, lactose and osteoporosis initiatives that include info kits, recipes, coupons and incentive prizes for weight loss or healthy lifestyle competitions.

· Website, newsletter and bulletin board materials and support that offers educational health information and recipes.

· Curriculum kits and lesson plans for teachers. Coloring books for young students and incentive prizes for kids and teens.

Moreover, the programs can be fun. “There are many healthy ways to cut calories and fat without giving up flavor,” says Jones. “One thing you can do is switch to reduced-fat dairy products. I use Cabot’s Sharp Light Cheddar in many of my recipes and nobody can tell the difference. It tastes and cooks like regular cheddar - but with half the fat and more protein. The protein is key in making dishes that are satisfying and keep folks feeling fuller longer.”

Jones adds, “I also replace some of the butter, sour cream and whipping cream called for in recipes with Cabot Greek-Style Yogurt. … It has a rich taste, with more protein and fewer calories.  And making the switch is easy using Cabot’s Greek-Style Yogurt Substitution chart as my guide.”

To find recipes, that use “Light Cheddars” such as Cabot’s Sharp LightSharp Extra LightJalapeno Light, and Pepper Jack Light, visit www.cabotcheese.coop/recipes. Each variety offers between 50 percent and 75 percent less fat than traditional cheddars, and all have the great full flavor and cooking properties of Cabot’s regular cheddar.

To ask a question or propose healthy ideas, contact Health and Wellness Programs at Cabot Creamery by email at healthinfo@cabotcheese.com.

ABOUT CABOT CREAMERY COOPERATIVE

Cabot Creamery Cooperative has been in continuous operation in Vermont since 1919, and makes a full line of cheeses, yogurt, sour cream, cottage cheese and butter. Widely known as makers of “The World’s Best Cheddar,” Cabot is owned by the 1200 dairy farm families of Agri-Mark, the Northeast’s premier dairy cooperative, with farms located throughout New England and upstate New York. For more information on Cabot, visit: http://www.cabotcheese.coop

 Cabot Creamery Cooperative is the world’s first cheese maker and dairy cooperative to achieve B Corporation Certification, a validation of its attention to environmental and social impacts on stakeholders.

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