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| Wells Junior High School student volunteers and staff pose with green beans that they picked on Spiller Farm in September. From left to right are Samantha Jones (Grade 5), Jessica Licardo (Grade 7), Abigail Bourque (Grade 7), Beth Cilluffo, Ethan Huber-Young (Grade. 7) Mary Rand, Caden Gibson (Grade 6) and Kerry Georgitis. (photo by Saul Lindauer) |
Local farms’ food now in school lunches
WELLS –
‘Farm to School Week’ in the Wells-Ogunquit CSD concluded on
September 30. Since 2005, this annual week-long event aims to bring locally
grown food to the District’s lunch rooms in order to improve nutrition and
create a greater appreciation for food from hometown farms.
Over the past seven harvest seasons, the WOCSD Nutrition
Services, directed by Tyler Goodwin, has steadily increased the purchase of
food from Chase Farm, Spiller Farm and Sunny Acres Farm, all located in Wells.
This year not only saw a continued increase in the purchase
of locally grown food but the introduction of student and staff volunteers to
participate in the harvest. In September and early October, up to twenty
student volunteers and six Wells Junior High School staff took bus trips after
school to Spiller Farm to help harvest bushels of carrots, green beans, and
potatoes. The student and faculty participation on the farm was organized by
WJHS science teacher, Saul Lindauer.
This year Spiller Farm agreed to devote space specifically
for growing food for the District. Produce harvested from this area was sold to
the District at a reduced cost. This new arrangement will allow Goodwin and
staff to process and freeze a much greater volume of vegetables that can be
offered throughout the school year.
Goodwin admits that buying locally adds work and costs to
preparing school lunches but said that “the trade off is worth it to get farm
fresh veggies” for students. Goodwin indicated that buying locally grown food
provides fresh food high in nutritional value, a real “hands-on” education for
school children in the growing and harvesting of food, the reduction of a
school lunch program’s carbon footprint and support for local farms.
For several years, the Maine Department of Education has
encouraged schools to buy more locally grown food to support the Farm to School
initiative. Goodwin firmly believes that what goes into growing and preparing
food should be a part of a student’s learning.
Story provided by Reg Bennett
