This post is by Megan Hubel, an Eat Well Guide intern, who is a social policy major from Northwestern and loves spending time with kids in the kitchen. She is looking forward to finding out what Danes are packing into their lunchboxes, while studying human migration in Copenhagen this fall.
Reheated pizza. Soggy French fries. Gelatinous desserts that jiggle. Those dubious lunch entrees traditionally found in school cafeterias may no longer be the only option for hungry students.
(Photo by Leslie, of the Edible Schoolyard in New Orleans, aka ESYNOLA, the ultimate in local, sustainable school food.)
In an attempt to bring fresh, home-grown produce to the cafeteria menu, NYC’s SchoolFood program, which manages food distribution for the city’s school districts, has been teaming up with New York Department of Education, New York State Agriculture and Markets, GreenThumb, and Added Value, as well as numerous community farms and local organizations to develop the Garden-to-Cafeteria program.
Still in its pilot phase, the Garden-to-Cafeteria program will work with about 20 schools this fall, letting students become active participates in local community gardens and urban farms. Not only will students learn how to grow their own vegetables, but also how to prepare fresh food and implement healthy eating habits. The program will culminate in a celebratory Harvest Week in mid-October, where students will finally get to taste and enjoy the fruits of their labor with lunch entrees that feature the student-grown produce. As part of the celebration, local farmers will bring seasonal tastings and chefs will give cooking demonstrations with the fresh fare.
Even for New York schools that don’t have gardens or community farms nearby, it’s likely that students will still be seeing more local produce on their plate. In a growing effort to supply more state-grown food to cafeterias, SchoolFood has also been delivering more produce like lettuce, peaches, and yogurt from stateside farmers to school kitchens.
The main objective of the program is to help kids draw the connection between the garden and their plate. If a young person can witness and participate in vegetable growing, and eventually eat those vegetables, it doesn’t only foster a sense of pride, but also appreciation for the growing process, and exposure to fresh food that is healthier and tastier. When students plant their own lunches, both the mind and body are truly nourished.
If you would like to see more local greens in your school’s cafeteria, or have a garden that could host student agro-projects, make sure to contact GreenThumb NYC (http://www.greenthumbnyc.org/) or Food Systems for NYC (http://www.foodsystemsnyc.org/node/218). One of the best ways to implement change is to be vocal about local food in your child’s school. If you’re interested in getting involved, try to find out who is managing food distribution for your district, and more often than not there will be a teacher/parent committee you can join.
New York schools aren’t the only ones turning over a green leaf this fall. Portland, Oregon school districts will be providing one meal per month made of entirely local ingredients, and about 15 schools in the district currently have farm to school programs. Maine school districts are also hosting Harvest events, and in the past year, more than 200 schools have had Harvest feasts with local food and new recipes. Since 2002, school districts in Washington State have been providing kids with local and organic salad bars. To see what educators, farmers, and students are doing in your state, check out www.farmtoschool.org for regional programs.
1 response so far ↓
1 Meredith Niles // Jul 24, 2008 at 11:53 am
It is so wonderful to see school districts all over the country reconnecting young people with their food. Not only will initiatives like this one cut down on “foodmiles” and likely greenhouse gas emissions associated with our food system (estimated to be as high as 20% of total US emissions) but they will be re-educating American youth about the origins of their food. With agricultural education comes nutrition education and the opportunity to stop and reverse a growing health epidemic in this country associated with unhealthy eating. I would encourage all school districts like the New York City one, to sign onto the Cool Foods Campaign, like the Cornell University Farm to School Program has already done for additional information and resources about ways we can all reduce our “FoodPrint”.
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