Joint Initiative to Provide Resources for School Gardens, Education Programs
MALVERN, Chester County – Pennsylvania’s students stand to benefit from better nutrition and enhanced education through a new program linking schools with local farms, Pennsylvania Agriculture acting Secretary Russell Redding and Education Secretary Gerald Zahorchak announced today.
Schools participating in the Farm to School program will integrate locally grown foods into their cafeterias and add lessons about agriculture to their academic curriculum. The program also promotes physical activity, healthy habits, environmental sustainability and positive learning experiences.
“It is critical for our young people to feed their bodies if we want them to feed their minds,” said Redding. “Thanks to the diversity of Pennsylvania agriculture, students can make smart decisions about what they eat and learn about the important connection we all have with our local farms. By bringing farms and schools together, we are helping not only our state’s leading industry – agriculture – but also our most valuable resource –our youth.”
“School gardens provide nutritious foods to feed our children and also give the students a real world classroom to learn in,” Zahorchak said. “It is important that our schools incorporate lesson plans on one of Pennsylvania’s leading industries, and this program successfully implements hands-on learning about agriculture into the classroom.”
The joint program will help keep students healthy through the promotion of nutritious and homegrown foods. Students who eat healthy are less likely to be sick and better equipped to concentrate in the classroom and succeed academically.
Today’s event was held at Great Valley School District’s food service garden, which is an example of a successful farm to school activity. The garden grows a variety of seasonal fruits and vegetables that are used by school food service staff.
The Farm to School program is an expansion of the Department of Agriculture’s Healthy Farms and Healthy Schools Program, which was established to educate kindergartners and their families about the importance of choosing healthy, locally produced foods while increasing awareness of Pennsylvania agriculture.