Workshop helps to grow farm to school programs in SBC
Farm to school programs were the topic of discussion at a May 18
workshop presented by the Community Alliance with Family Farmers
that was attended by school officials, food service directors,
parents and teachers.
Workshop helps to grow farm to school programs in SBC
Farm to school programs were the topic of discussion at a May 18 workshop presented by the Community Alliance with Family Farmers that was attended by school officials, food service directors, parents and teachers.
Kathryn Spencer, who works with the community food systems program through CAFF, led the discussion. The workshop was a starting point for incorporating farm to school programs into San Benito County schools since there aren’t any now.
CAFF is a nonprofit that works throughout California, but is especially active on the Central Coast. The agency works to promote family farmers’ sustainability through buy local campaigns, political advocacy and through farm to school programs.
Farm to school programs work in two ways, according to Spencer. Part of it is getting fresh produce from local farms into schools so that kids eat healthier meals. The other part is educating students about where their food comes from and it can happen in a variety of ways – farm visits, a school garden, farmers visits to campus or even events such as the annual Farm Day at Bolado Park.
Spencer stressed that there are many different ways in which a farm to school program can be run. Some districts have a coordinator who handles the program district-wide, while others are run at the school level. Some programs have paid staff, and volunteers run others.
“We are really just there to connect kids to food and farms,” Spencer said, “teaching kids how to plant and grow food, bringing local food into cafeterias.”
The program started in 1999, working with school cafeterias and then expanding into hospitals and larger cafeterias.
Spencer said there are challenges to getting local produce into classrooms, such as the low reimbursement rate that food service staff get to feed children. With less than $3 a lunch, food service staff members need to get as much as they can and sometimes local produce can be expensive.
Mari Rossi, of B&R Farms, whose family processes dried apricots, said that they have tried to work with schools in the past, but their product has been too expensive.
“As a food grower it has been very difficult to offer at such a reduced price,” she said. “We barely get it watered … I’d love to support all of this, but when you are a small, local farmer or grower, it gets tough.”
The other issue is that it can be difficult for food service staff to work with a variety of different sources for their foods. CAFF has created a growers’ collaborative that helps address that issue.
“CAFF becomes a broker, but we don’t make any money off of it,” Spencer said.
Spencer acknowledged that starting a program – and finding funding to support it – can be difficult.
“It takes a lot of time and effort,” she said.
Although the workshop was meant to inform stakeholders, it also was an opportunity for people to share ideas and thoughts about where to start in implementing a program.
Mary Anne Hughes, the executive director of Community Pantry, said she wanted to find out about “any way to help as a conduit.”
Janet Felice, who oversees the food service program for the Hollister School District, also attended.
“We are looking at adding salad bars and vending machines with fruit,” she said.
At San Benito High School, the food service workers want to implement fruit and vegetable carts.
One Ladd Lane teacher, Rosa Sanchez, is involved in Ag in the Classroom and had started work on a school garden with her students.
“We started a garden with tomatoes,” she said. “But it was destroyed. I attended an Ag in the Classroom conference and I have lots of ideas, but I need help from the community.”
The Ladd Lane teacher said the school is isolated and dark at night, so she is working on ways to discourage vandalism of the school garden. She also has plans to replant seeds during the last few weeks of school.
“School gardens are a really great way to educate kids,” Spencer said. “If they grow their own food, they are more likely to try something for the first time. I’ve seen kids running with their faces stained red because they tried a fresh beet for the first time.”
Another issue is that during the summer months, school gardens are often left unattended. Spencer said in some schools with which she has worked, community volunteers or parents have adopted the gardens for summer. In others, they have fundraised to install irrigation systems to keep plants watered.
CAFF does offer curriculum to teachers to help incorporate lessons on local farms and locally grown foods into the classroom, and the curriculum meets state standards.
One way Spencer suggested as a starting point is the Harvest of the Month Curriculum. CAFF offers tasting kits that can be used in the classroom. Champions for Change, a program run through the California Department of Public Health that promotes healthy eating habits for children and families, offers curriculum geared toward the specific produce item that is in season each month. The lessons are online and can be downloaded, and it comes with components for parents, teachers and food service directors.
“Our part is to get it into the classroom so kids can touch, feel and smell it,” Spencer said. “If it is in season, it is going to be a bit cheaper.”
During the second half of the meeting, Spencer asked for input from the group on what they thought would be the next steps to follow through on implementing a program in San Benito.
Many thought the first steps should be meeting with county and school district superintendents, and looking at grants.
“I know how nutrition connects to school attendance and classroom success,” said Mike Sanchez, the county superintendent of schools, who attended part of the workshop. “Let’s have some meetings and get some success.”
Resources:
Community Alliance with Family Farmers
www.caff.org
Harvest of the Month
www.harvestofthemonth.com
Champions for Change
www.cachampionsforchange.net
