Third grade students eagerly raised their hands to share what they knew about compost and food waste before assembling into small groups to collectively participate in an activity. After the lesson, they were all smiles as they helped themselves to a healthy snack of carrots, green and orange peppers, broccoli, cherry tomatoes and hummus.
“We’re educating the students on how to prevent food waste by using leftovers, composting and growing carrot tops and green onions. Hopefully we can spread this throughout the community and encourage more kids to use their food scraps,” said Jen Kemppinen Health Education Coordinator for Nevada County Public Health’s CalFresh Healthy Living program.
It was the fifth and last visit to third, fourth and fifth grade classrooms at Ready Springs School this school year as part of a new pilot curriculum program to teach young people about food waste and healthy eating. Students learned that reducing food waste is good for the planet, their bodies and saves money and valuable resources. “They’re loving it. They eat so many vegetables. We’re really excited about it,” said Shauna Schultz, a dietitian and nutrition educator contracted with Nevada County Public Health’s CalFresh Healthy Living program.
“They are at an impressionable age and hopefully the ideas stick with them and they will bring the message home to their parents. That’s my hope to make a difference somewhere,” said Schultz.
In California, more than 6 million tons of food waste is thrown in the trash every year, contributing to methane gas, a climate super pollutant that is 84 times more potent than carbon dioxide, according to https://calrecycle.ca.gov/. Yet much of the organic waste, including food waste, can be composted and turned into soil. A plan is underway in Nevada County to provide curbside collection of food waste to meet state standards for diversion as mandated by SB1383. It’s estimated that 10,182.60 tons of food waste could be recovered in Nevada County, according to Waste Management.
Only two schools in the state, a total of 278 students in Nevada County and San Diego, are involved with the new educational opportunity about food waste using curriculum from Leah’s Pantry. Leah’s Pantry is a California nonprofit that conducts training for California’s SNAP-Ed program, called CalFresh Healthy Living. The vision of the program is to ensure all people have access to healthy food, no matter what their socioeconomic status.
“Our plan was to partner with a local school on Food Waste Prevention, Recovery and Redistribution efforts,” said Toby Guevin, Program Manager, Health and Wellness Division of Nevada County Public Health. “Starting with direct education classes to create awareness and interest made sense and aligned with the school’s existing efforts.” Nevada County’s goal is to reach out to CalFresh eligible populations through the program.
“I think it’s been exciting for the kids. They’ve learned where their food comes from,” said Claudia Piner, third grade teacher at Ready Springs.
The lessons complement activities the students are already involved with at the school such as composting in the school garden, sorting recyclables, the formation of a new scratch cooking meal program and running a school store loaded with donated food from local food banks, church and rotary groups.
“Ready Springs has been very engaged and excited about the efforts and it compliments a lot of their existing efforts, too. So we see this as a multi-year project with the hopes of encouraging other schools to do something similar,” said Guevin.
Already, the school is leading the way when it comes to food waste.
Three years ago, Linda Girton, a former school employee, helped establish a THRIVE (Together Helping Rise Inspire Value and Empower) store on the campus, to provide healthy food at no cost to students and families who needed it most.
“I really wanted it to be a store, a community hub, a school hub where every kid would feel welcome. I didn’t want there to be any stigma. It's as successful as I envisioned,” said Girton. Even though she is retired, she continues to volunteer her time, coordinating food deliveries and collecting data.
At the school, 50 percent of the students are identified as low income and qualify for Title 1 Funding. “We have families who are really struggling,” said Principal Chrissy McKeown. Today, the community has come together to support the THRIVE store and students help run it. Food Bank of Nevada County, Interfaith Food Ministries, Penn Valley Rotary, United Way and Whispering Pines Church donate food and volunteer hours to keep the store running. In the lunchroom, students are diverting waste from going into the trash. They are recycling unused plastic utensils and condiment packets, pouring unused milk into five gallon buckets to dump down the drain, feeding lettuce and fruit to chickens and donating uneaten, perfectly good food to the THRIVE store.
“I see a lot of the waste that goes on,” said Brandy Carter who serves as the school liaison and farm educator for Sierra Harvest as well as being a teacher’s aid. She runs two gardens on campus and is starting a composting project. “Part of my goal for the garden is to provide food for the THRIVE store,” she said.
Older students can enroll in a cooking class elective to create recipes based on ingredients found in the THRIVE store, that will in turn provide ready-made meals for families to take home. Soon, the school will add a new salad bar and scratch cooking, to further reduce plastic packaging and food waste. Surveys conducted through the CalFresh Healthy Living Team’s curriculum will inform future programming next school year. Youngsters who have gone through the program will serve as youth ambassadors to teach others. “All of this ties in together. It’s all part of the cycle,” said Carter.
Laura Petersen is a freelance writer living in Grass Valley. This article is one of a series written on behalf of Nevada County. She can be reached at laurapetersenmedia@gmail.com.
