New York State is offering individual $5,000 grants to service providers that help reduce food insecurity and encourage healthier eating among people living with mental illness, the state Office of Mental Health announced March 30 during National Nutrition Month. The grants fund the agency’s Eat Well NY program, which it described as a three-part intervention that teaches participants how to incorporate healthy, nutritious foods into their diets, a practice the office said is connected with positive mental well-being.

“Access to sufficient healthy food is a bedrock of overall wellness, both physical and mental,” Office of Mental Health Commissioner Dr. Ann Sullivan said in the announcement. “Through the Eat Well NY program, local service providers connect with New Yorkers living with mental health issues and provide them with access to fresh food and how to prepare a healthy nutritious diet.”