Author: Julia Esther Van SoelenPublisher:
ISBN: 9781303444074
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :
Book Description
At its essence, "Farm to School" aims to close the literal and figurative distance between the foods children eat at school and the farms where this food comes from through a varied and diverse programs and activities including garden- and farm-based education and the inclusion of fresh, local produce in school meal programs. Farm to School provides a range of benefits from increasing students' consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables (Joshi, Kalb, & Beery, 2006), thereby improving students' nutrition and health, to providing important new markets for small and midscale farmers, creating multiplier effects within regional economies (Kane, Kruse, Markesteyn Ratcliffe, Sobell, & Tessman, 2009; Tuck, Haynes, King, & Pesch, 2010). Yet despite their benefits, Farm to School programs are challenging to implement and sustain, requiring alignment of diverse stakeholders' values, changes in the culture that surrounds school food, and a move away from deeply entrenched, industrial school food systems. Ultimately, Farm to School represents a paradigm shift away from the status quo and towards an environmental and social ethic much like what Thomas Lyson (2004) calls "civic agriculture."This thesis applies data from workshops held in 2010 which employed a method of community-based research and collaborative brainstorming called "power mapping" in order to better understand the potential for expanding Farm to School programs in Yuba County, California. Specifically, I use two case study locations: the county's largest school district, Marysville Joint Unified School District, and the county's smallest school district, Camptonville Elementary School District.Data indicate that there is a high degree of interest in Farm to School within Yuba County, including interest from school food service professionals, local farmers, and county agriculture agencies. Stakeholders interested in Farm to School appear to be relatively informed and sympathetic to enhancing the healthfulness of school food, attributable to national media attention on childhood obesity, food insecurity, and the quality of school meals. Yuba County's location in a rich agricultural region and California's long growing season could facilitate the implementation of Farm to School procurement. Findings indicate that Marysville Joint Unified School District is primed for scaling up its existing Farm to School procurement efforts because it serves fresh produce with every meal, has salad bars at every school in the district, and has the underlying interest from the School Food Service Director that is necessary to support such efforts. Furthermore, expressed interest by Cooperative Extension and the Yuba Sutter Farm Bureau can facilitate relationships with local farmers.Findings also indicate that Camptonville Elementary School District is primed for implementing a more comprehensive and integrated Farm to School program, as demonstrated by the flourishing school garden and a significant amount of scratch cooking used within the school lunch program. Demonstrated interest from community members and the school district's Superintendent can facilitate the expansion of current Farm to School activities. This support, combined with the town's culture of independence, self-sufficiency and community-mindedness, position the school district to implement a more comprehensive Farm to School program.
