Coorong Healthy Highways promotes healthy eating for travellers and the local community as well as active recreation and tourist places to stop for rest breaks.
The meals meet the CHH criteria which have more vegetables per serve, use healthier cooking methods, use healthy fats and oils, swap white bread to whole grain products and encourage low or reduced fat dairy.
Improving the health value of children’s menu by increasing the vegetable intake and using healthier cooking methods has been a priority of the project. Healthy kid’s meal deals have been developed to promote healthier options as many children do not meet the Australian Dietary Guidelines for daily vegetable intake. Water, reduced or low fat milk drinks and 100% juice products have been promoted as healthier alternatives to soft drinks and these also feature in some kid’s meal deals.
Coorong Healthy Highways is helping to achieve a number of Coorong District Council’s strategic objectives with respect to community wellbeing (see references). This project promotes active and healthy lifestyles and addresses the core services of youth and community development. The project also contributes to the Coorong District Council meeting two of the four main objectives in the Murray and Mallee LGA Regional Public Health Plan (see references). These are:
- Increasing opportunities for healthy living, healthy eating and being active.
- Stronger and healthier communities and neighbourhoods for all generations.