New school program in Texas connects students with local farmers

Oct 01, 2015

Farm Fresh Fridays teaches students about healthy eating

In an effort to each elementary school students about the benefits of eating healthy and the farmers that produce the food they eat, the Texas Department of Agriculture launched a new program called Farm Fresh Fridays.

Classroom

The program’s goals are to establish a direct connection between Texas schools, farmers and ranchers while at the same time trying to tackle childhood obesity.

“Farm Fresh Fridays is about teaching our kids where their food comes from and why it is important to make healthy choices,” Commissioner Miller said in a release. “Our farmers and ranchers work hard every day to produce the food we eat. Then, members of the food service teams at our schools work hard to create healthy meals that kids enjoy. By fostering these connections and serving healthy, locally grown meals, we are building a stronger future for our state. Texas agriculture matters in each of our lives, and I’m excited to see it take a more prominent seat at the table in schools across the Lone Star State.”

A new website was launched as a result of Farm Fresh Fridays. It offers many tools to help establish and maintain relationships between farmers and the communities they help feed.

The announcement of the Farm Fresh Fridays program comes just days before October and National Farm to School Month. As part of the month long celebrations of local agriculture in schools, Texas is kicking off its Local Products Challenge.

The challenge encourages Texas schools to incorporate more locally grown products and agriculture as a whole into the classroom.

Commissioner Miller said children are the country’s best natural resource and need to be healthy to propel the state and country into the future.

Join the conversation and tell us your thoughts about Texas implementing the Farm Fresh Fridays program. What are some ways agriculture can be incorporated into the classroom?

Video: How women saved agricultural economics and other ideas for why diversity matters | Jill J. McCluskey

Dr. Jill J. McCluskey, Regents Professor at Washington State University and Director of the School of Economic Science

Dr. McCluskey documents that women entered agricultural economics in significant numbers starting in the 1980s, and their ranks have increased over time. She argues that women have increased the relevance in the field of agricultural economics through their diverse interests, perspectives, and experiences. In their research, women have expanded the field's treatment of non-traditional topics such as food safety and nutrition and environmental and natural resource economics. In this sense, women saved the Agricultural Economics profession from a future as a specialty narrowly focused on agricultural production and markets. McCluskey will go on to discuss some of her own story and how it has shaped some of her thinking and research. She will present her research on dual-career couples in academia, promotional achievement of women in both Economics and Agricultural Economics, and work-life support programs.

The Daryl F. Kraft Lecture is arranged by the Department of Agribusiness and Agricultural Economics, with the support of the Solomon Sinclair Farm Management Institute, and in cooperation with the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences.