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Overview
“The biggest thing you can do is understand that every time you’re going to the grocery store, you’re voting with your dollars. Support your farmers’ market. Support local food. Really learn to cook. – Alice Waters, Chef & Author
The northern hemisphere is alive with asparagus shooting up, cherry trees in full blossom, sweet peas forming on the pod, and the promise of summer emerging, along with tomatoes, cucumbers, and melons sprouts in the greenhouse. Yet, much of this is invisible and foreign to people who are not actively involved in the food system. For many, food “comes” from the grocery store or a restaurant without a single thought as to its origin.
The Farm to Fork movement encourages us to buy locally produced food, connect with the farms and farmers who grow that food, and celebrate all involved in its production and distribution. Most food comes from farms of some sort, but what does farm to fork really mean?
Generally, when people talk about farm to fork, they’re referring to supporting local farms and small farms. The distance food travels between leaving a farm and being eaten is known as food miles. Local can mean many things, but buying local typically means food that was produced within a 100 mile radius (i.e. less than 100 food miles).
There are many ways to participate in the Farm to Fork movement: shop at your local farmers’ market, support restaurants that buy directly from farmers, join a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA), or even buy school lunch, if your school participates in Farm to School Network programs (if not, when you’re back on campus, ask!). By working together, we can shift our food systems to be more sustainable for our communities, our climate and our planet.
In partnership with The Edible Schoolyard Project, this lesson plan is designed to help you learn about the Farm to Fork movement.
THINK
YOU, yes you, can help shift our food systems to be more sustainable. Here’s a great example: in 2011, a group of farmworkers in Immokalee, Florida, launched a Campaign for Fair Food to fight for higher wages. If you have ever eaten a tomato in the winter, it likely came from Florida, and was quite possibly picked by one of these workers. In a less-industrialized food cycle with fewer people, processes and steps between the grower and consumer, a much larger portion of your food dollars (even up to 100%!) go directly to the hardworking farmer and farmworkers.
ACTIVITY
This video documents their work and fight for better wages, which made a huge difference for many farmworkers. Watch the video and then read “Where does your grocery money go?” by journalist Tracie McMillian.
- Share two facts that you learned about food and food production from the video and article.
- Based on learnings, would you and your family consider buying food from responsible sources, even if that may mean paying higher prices?
- What is one specific thing would you be proud to know your dollars are supporting?
This activity is an adapted version of our partner Edible Schoolyard’s lesson “Debate Plate: Justice and Labor.”
DELIVERABLES
Upload your answers as a PDF document using the upload button.
Submission Guidelines
- If you do not see an upload button, you need to log in
- Submit all entries as PDFs; no Word or Pages documents
- Be sure to include all content for your submission in one document
- Do not include # or spaces in filenames
- You will see a confirmation in green that your submission uploaded correctly; if you do not see this confirmation, please try again
- Send any questions to classroom@turninggreen.org
Don’t forget to post about the challenge and your learnings/doings on social media and tag us on Facebook @TurningGreen, on Twitter @TurningGreenOrg, and on Instagram @TurningGreenOrg and use #TGClassroom.
THINK
Our priorities, preferences, and choices impact everyday actions which impact people and planet. Do your food habits align with your values? Could they?
ACTIVITY
Print and cut out the food consideration cards or create a set of your own with cut up scratch paper (reuse!). Arrange the cards to represent your current priorities when making food choices.
Consider your priorities (or enlist family members) and respond to the following questions:
- What are your current shopping priorities?
- Do they change in different situations?
- Are there disagreements in your household around food choices?
- Would you make some changes if barriers were eliminated? Like cost, access, etc.
- Might you want to move any priorities higher up your list? Like supporting animal welfare by xyz. How could you change your habits to reflect your new awareness and shifting priorities?
This activity is based on our partner Edible Schoolyard’s resource “Food Consideration Cards.”
DELIVERABLES
Upload your answers in a PDF document using the upload button.
Submission Guidelines
- If you do not see an upload button, you need to log in
- Submit all entries as PDFs; no Word or Pages documents
- Be sure to include all content for your submission in one document
- Do not include # or spaces in filenames
- You will see a confirmation in green that your submission uploaded correctly; if you do not see this confirmation, please try again
- Send any questions to classroom@turninggreen.org
Don’t forget to post about the challenge and your learnings/doings on social media and tag us on Facebook @TurningGreen, on Twitter @TurningGreenOrg, and on Instagram @TurningGreenOrg and use #TGClassroom.
THINK
Have you ever heard of a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) box? Ordered one? Been interested? Changing shopping and eating habits to support local agriculture is doable. CSAs are a popular system in which consumers directly support farmers and get weekly food deliveries or pick ups from that farm of fresh, seasonal harvests. Read this Serious Eats article about the pros and cons of joining a CSA for a consumer and this Utah State article about how different types benefit farmers.
ACTIVITY
Research CSAs in your area in a search engine or on Local Harvest. Create a visual depiction of the CSAs in your area — mapping the region or state with the types of produce currently available. Feel free to include farmers’ markets as well! Talk to your family and see if joining a CSA makes sense for your household.
DELIVERABLES
Upload your CSA visual as a PDF document using the upload button. Post on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, etc. Tag @TurningGreenOrg and use #TGClassroom.
Submission Guidelines
- If you do not see an upload button, you need to log in
- Submit all entries as PDFs; no Word or Pages documents
- Be sure to include all content for your submission in one document
- Do not include # or spaces in filenames
- You will see a confirmation in green that your submission uploaded correctly; if you do not see this confirmation, please try again
- Send any questions to classroom@turninggreen.org
Don’t forget to post about the challenge and your learnings/doings on social media and tag us on Facebook @TurningGreen, on Twitter @TurningGreenOrg, and on Instagram @TurningGreenOrg and use #TGClassroom.