Healthy fundraising

Pat MacIntosh, Alberta Health Services

It’s that time of year again, when many schools, community groups and sports teams begin fundraising. However, unhealthy foods are often sold to raise money.  Healthy food choices help children to grow, play and learn. They also help people of all ages maintain a healthy body weight. Help support your organization’s goals to improve workplace wellness or adopt healthier eating policies and consider healthy fundraising this year! Here are just a few ideas.


Non-food fundraising: 

• Promote physical activity. Sell gym passes, sport bags and water bottles. Hold events like walk-a-thons or carnivals with games. Charge an entry fee to dances or sporting events. Raffle off a treadmill, bike or tickets to a major sporting event.
• Sell items that people will use anyway. Magazine subscriptions are easy. They are delivered right to the customer! Gift cards for grocery stores can be sold year round. Bedding plants, bulbs, and flowers are good sellers in the spring. 
• Promote the arts and showcase your local talent. School or community choirs, drama clubs or theatre groups can sell tickets for holiday concerts, dinner theatres, plays or musicals. 

Healthy food fundraising: 

• Partner with a local restaurant that offers healthier options to offer dinner with a silent auction
• Barbecue with healthier options such as lean hamburgers on whole grain buns. Offer a side of raw vegetables and water to drink. 
• Partner with a local butcher. Sell meat packages for a percentage of the sales. Aim to offer leaner cuts of meat

School-based or worksite options for fundraising could include: 

• Smoothies–use yogurt, frozen fruit and low-fat milk to make a healthy drink
• Breakfast – serve breakfast burritos or pizza; use whole wheat soft taco shells or panini bread. Add eggs, salsa and veggies. 
• Hot lunch soup –the students in foods class or worksite staff can make one or two healthy soups to sell. The Healthy U website has some great recipes that meet the Alberta Nutrition Guidelines: www.healthyalberta.com/recipes.htm

Vending: 

• Vending machines often have foods not found in the four food groups of Canada’s Food Guide. You can still make  money with vending machines while stocking healthy options instead. 
• Items that meet the Alberta Nutrition Guidelines include: 
• Drinks such as milk or soy beverage, water, and small containers of 100per cent juice. 
• Healthy snacks such as whole grain crackers with peanut butter or hard cheese, yogurt, small whole grain bagels or muffins, 100per cent dried fruit leathers or frozen fruit bars, or raw vegetables with single serve containers of hummus. 
• Lean meat sandwiches on whole grain breads or whole wheat tortilla wraps.
• If you offer foods such as cookies or baked chips and nachos, remember to keep the package sizes small. Set the price of these items the same  or slightly higher  than the healthier options. 

Help make the healthy choice the easy choice.

Pat MacIntosh is a Registered Dietitian with Alberta Health Services’ Nutrition Services. She can be reached at Community Health Services at 403-502-1411 or email pat.macintosh@albertahealthservices.ca