Stay connected with family meals and your local commissary

NOTE: To see a DeCA video related to this release, click here.

FORT GREGG-ADAMS, Va. - The Defense Commissary Agency (DeCA) is celebrating National Family Meals Month in September and encouraging customers to share one more meal together each week at home.

Commissary patrons can get help preparing healthy and affordable meals at home with Thinking Outside the Box recipes that offer dietitian-approved, no-fuss solutions that save time and money.

"We've taken the guesswork out of shopping for nutritious items to help build a healthy overall eating pattern with resources like our Thinking Outside the Box recipes and Dietitian-Approved Thumb labels," said Deborah Harris, DeCA's dietitian and health and wellness program manager (who holds a master of Public Health degree and is a registered dietitian and certified diabetes care and education specialist). "Shoppers will also find additional savings on the items listed in the featured recipes."

Every two weeks, a new Thinking Outside the Box (TOTB) recipe is featured in the commissary sales flyer highlighting specially priced ingredients available in commissaries. These recipes feature a key nutrient and always align with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans to provide healthy and economical options, Harris said.

Commissary customers can start their meal planning with DeCA's TOTB booklet, which includes tips from the agency dietitian, an introduction to the Dietitian-Approved Thumb program, a list of ingredient swaps to make recipes more nutritious, and a list of TOTB recipes along with a close-up introduction to some of the favorites.

To make it even easier for customers shopping online, all the ingredients for the featured TOTB recipe can be added to the Commissary CLICK2GO shopping basket with one click. Patrons can use the Commissary CLICK2GO options to click on recipes and filter by "dietitian approved" and then build their basket or simply look for the "dietitian approved" icon on the recipes.

National Family Meals Month was started by the FMI Foundation in September 2015 with the goal of raising awareness of the benefits of sharing meals. Research shows family meals are associated with increased fruit and vegetable intake, reduced incidence of obesity, improved mental health and better social interactions, according to the organization's website.

"Busier-than-ever schedules can make family mealtime at home a challenge," Harris said. "So, helping families eat well together is one more way the commissary works to meet its patrons' health and wellness needs."

For more information, visit https://corp.commissaries.com/healthy-living.

-DeCA-

About DeCA:The Defense Commissary Agency operates a worldwide chain of commissaries providing groceries to military personnel, retirees, disabled veterans and other authorized patrons and their families in a safe and secure shopping environment. Commissaries provide a military benefit, saving authorized patrons thousands of dollars annually on their purchases compared to similar products at commercial retailers. The discounted prices include a 5-percent surcharge, which supports the costs of building, modernizing and sustaining commissary facilities. A core military family support element and valued part of military pay and benefits, commissaries contribute to family readiness, enhance the quality of life for America's military services and their families, and help recruit and retain the best and brightest men and women to serve their country.