Buying local foods is an excellent way to engage with your community, forge new connections, and encourage healthy eating habits. Have you ever visited a farmers market and been astonished by how fresh the produce is, or made a new friend by chatting with the farmers who grew the goods? Local food brings people together.
In Haywood County, NC, the community promotes the use of local food in school classrooms, cafeterias, and during field trips. They collectively work towards providing more nutritious and balanced meals in school programs while sparking curiosity about how the food is produced and where it originates. Farm to School aims to help students understand that “food doesn’t just come from grocery stores… it comes from somewhere else first” – Alison Francis.
The school district is working towards transforming the school cafeteria into a learning lab. To this end, it is incorporating the students into a taste-testing program(to try out new meal options), sharing what farm produce is being used, and developing a holistic farm-to-table approach both inside and outside of the classroom. The goal is to spread awareness about different food options and promote the idea that fresh foods can taste equally, if not better, than something like chicken nuggets.
It is recommended that you contact your county extension agent first to reach out to your local farmers. They can connect you with GAP-certified farms. The certification allows farmers to grow food that is automatically safe to sell to schools and county food nutrition programs. The USDA provides support in buying local foods, helps with the certification process, and provides additional resources for a farm that wants to collaborate but doesn’t know where to start.
Ultimately, the town of Canton and the rest of Haywood County look to foster a mindset that someone is “more likely to start eating strawberries instead of drinking soda”-Sally Dixon, it is a healthier and more sustainable way to live.
