In an effort to prioritize good health, the Capital Area Food Bank works with local farms, farmers markets and local food projects to get more fresh produce into the hands of our low-income neighbors.   Through Share the Harvest Gift Project, every dollar enables more families in this area to receive additional fresh produce and improve their health. 

When you purchase a gift in someone’s name, you’ve made it possible for us to partner with more local farms and purchase extra fresh produce for people in need.  It doesn’t stop there.  The Capital Area Food Bank offers a wide variety of nutrition education classes that help people make the most of the fresh produce they receive.  Additionally, youth are engaged through garden and cooking programs that weave the message of nutrition into tangible activities.   Your contribution helps us train leaders at social service organizations to be nutrition educators in their own communities. 

Please help us work for long-term solutions by sourcing locally grown produce and providing people with not only the healthiest food, but also the educational tools they need to improve their own health now and in the future.

To find out more about Share the Harvest please click here.

Thanks to our friends at Common Good City Farm, we were introduced to Mindy Mitchell, who not only made the beautiful signage around our small garden but also worked with our staff to create the mural illustration.

Then a year went by, then another and maybe another…I can’t even remember – but no group, no individual, nobody was interested in making a mural on the side of a shed.  And so the beautiful illustration just sat in a file.

But then, through a friend of a friend (you know how that works) a connection was made and our team was put in contact with Katherine Elkins, the Visual Arts Teacher at T.C. Williams High School in Alexandria. After looking for years for a community group, the perfect person just fell into our lap!  The partnership couldn’t have been more perfect.   The high school would benefit from an exciting off-site art project while learning about the work that the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and Capital Area Food Bank do at Clagett Farm.  And the FYI program benefited exponentially by having a beautiful mural painted by volunteers.

Ms. Elkins decided to project the image onto the shed for students to trace, so with numerous orange extension cords snaking their way around basil and parsley plants we found a power source.  We used a combination of rain barrels and wooden boards to balance the projector and laptop.  Of course the “best place” for this balancing act ended up being directly in the middle of our Pizza Garden. 

But alas, no luck, it was too bright a day for the projection to actually be visible. And that is where the really impressive work began.  Ms. Elkins immediately set to work organizing a few students who would work with her to make the freehand sketch, while I took the other students on a tour of the farm.

By the time we returned from the tour the image outline was up. The students were phenomenal workers!  While one team worked on the mural others took turns eating their lunch, catching up on other class assignments and exploring the farm.  Within a few hours the painting was nearly complete.

 A few weeks later a handful of students and Ms. Elkins came back to the farm to add a few finishing touches and voila!  The project that took years to get off the ground was done!

Not enough can be said about Ms. Elkins’ leadership.  Without her extra effort in so many areas none of this would have been possible.  The students were thoroughly inspiring – they are talented artists, joyful individuals and cooperative teammates.  My day with them was thoroughly a delight.

 Ms. Elkins and her class made the garden space at Clagett Farm a warm and inviting space for the nearly 200 children that used that garden this summer through the FYI program. 

We just finished our eighth week of the Farm Youth Initiative and despite this summer’s heat, our kids seem to love getting out of the city to visit Clagett Farm.  A joint venture of the CAFB and the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, Clagett is a 285-acre, certified organic farm located in Upper Marlboro, MD.  The FYI program consists of a two-day nutrition and gardening class for children from Kids Cafe sites in the Washington metropolitan area.  FYI education themes change every growing season, with this year’s theme centered on every child’s favorite thing – snack time!

The first day is a one-hour session on how to read an ingredient list in order to tell if you have a healthy snack.  The class uses hands-on demonstrations and activities to keep the kids interested including getting to prepare a snack together in groups.  The “edu-tainment” continues the next day with games and activities at Clagett Farm.  Students plant, water and harvest fresh vegetables from the “pizza” and “pasta” ingredient gardens.  Then, they make a healthy pasta salad together with the freshly picked vegetables.  They also get to play in the sprinkler and feed crickets to the Clagett chickens.

Close to 200 children participated in the program this summer.  The Farm Youth Initiative is a truly collaborative project.  The program works across a number of departments within the food bank, including the Food for Kids, Harvest for Health and the Nutrition Education departments. This year, FYI operated at 11 different sites in and around DC, with some sites participating more than once. 

As part of the Fresh Produce Grant shared between the CAFB and Clagett Farm, every child who goes through the two-day course receives a ½ CSA share, which works out to about 75 pounds of fresh, organic produce for every site who participates in the program.  In addition to the CSA shares the students take home with corresponding recipes, participants harvested over 145 pounds of fresh produce.

As one young participant put it, “This is more fun than all you can eat pizza and wing night at my summer camp!”

We couldn’t agree more.

Took our tykes to a farm!

As part of being a site served by the Capital Area Food Bank (our kids receive a daily afterschool snack and, now that it’s summer, lunch) we get to participate in the Farm Youth Initiative, where our kids get to visit a local farm to learn all about healthy plants and how we grow ‘em.

One long and not entirely barf-free bus ride brought us to Clagett Farm, which partners with the food bank. We were ushered into a barn where I immediately met the beautiful, comforting sight of scads of fresh garlic hanging from the ceiling to dry (garlic that I’ve been getting to eat all week, garlic that is SPECTACULAR!)

I admired the attitude they tried to instill about nature in the kids; they pointed out that yes there were bugs everywhere on the farm, but were it not for the bees and the wasps doing their crucial pollinating, they would have no new plants. “Don’t bother them and they won’t bother you. You are a giant. They are scared of you.” And sure enough, everyone stayed calm and no one got stung.

We began with some games that reviewed good nutrition (the kids had already received an intro nutrition class back at our site).  The way they approached everything was simple and age-appropriate.  The basic take-home lessons were

1. The first ingredients should be something good for you
2. A short list is a good list
3. Don’t eat anything you can’t pronounce

In this activity, which involved buckets of water (many many points for farm people!), the kids ran relays to dump cups into buckets. Their cups had ingredients written on them (everything from “carrots” to “high fructose corn syrup”) and they had to pour them into the “healthy” or “unhealthy” bucket. They were into it!

Then we marched up to the small but beautifully maintained gardens.

Clagett farm is gigantic (it was originally a tobacco farm that was repurposed for organic fruits and veggies and various education programs), but this little section is specifically for the Farm Youth Initiative, the partnership with the Capital Area Food Bank that brought us here.

They very cleverly divided up the garden into the “pasta garden” (ingredients that you would put into pasta or a pasta salad like the one we’d eat later that day), and a “pizza garden” (ingredients for pizza).  A great way for kids to see fresh veggies not as (eurgh) actual fresh veggies but as ingredients in delicious foods with which they were comfortable and familiar.

And they got to pick them!

The instructors reviewed the techniques for properly picking tomatoes, hot peppers (hint: don’t touch them directly or they’ll burn you!), and carrots (which were tricky to get out of the ground! They stepped in giving them a little nudge with a spade. Apparently the trick to picking carrots when they’re ready is to wait until you can see the orange tops of the carrots sticking out).

The kids were all responsible for washing and weighing their produce (they were annoyed that they didn’t get to hold on to their individual tomatoes and carrots, because some were “better” than others. I swear to God, the things kids come up with to be competitive about are truly insane).

Anyway, they ended up with a pretty good lookin’ stash!

We played around the garden a little more: while one of the guides ran to another building to get supplies, I introduced the kids to “nature’s gum” (fresh mint).  They were super into it! When I was a kid and we’d go out to dinner, I always ate the mint garnish on fancy desserts (well I mean, actually I still do).

Then we got to play in the sprinkler (which is totally still just as fun when you’re an adult) and then paid a visit to some chickens!

The guides told the kids that the chickens liked eating juicy crickets, grasshoppers, and praying mantises, and the kids had WAY too much fun catching bugs and throwing them into the chickens. The chickens were actually eating straight out of kids’ hands by the end of it (which our guides said was really unusual).

Back to the barn we went, for a quick activity identifying the veggies we saw in the garden that went into the snack we were about to eat.

And then it was local food time! Whoo! I was very very obviously very very excited.

The table was beautifully laid out, with scrumptious looking whole-wheat pasta salad, that contained (this is clever, people with kids should do this) vegetables that were shredded so finely you were hard-pressed to tell what they were).

And bowls with a colorful selection of the veggies they themselves had picked (those yellow tomatoes are probably the most sweet, delicious of their kind I have ever been fortunate enough to taste) and, to keep the kiddos happy, some cheese.

In general, I was disappointed about how little the kids ate. A lot of them raved about the cucumbers (perhaps the texture of that is more familiar to them? Kids like crunch?), and some of them just kept on eating the yummy salad, but in general they were still kind of apprehensive about the whole thing. We also just have a bunch who never seem to eat anything…

Anyway, I sure did! And more and more and more. I could not stop. It was SO GOOD!

Hilarious: I point my camera at this, and Karen, one of our most sarcastic fifth graders (whom I adore), looks at me and says, “You would take a picture of your pasta salad, Ileana”.

Yes. I would.

Trip concluded with a visit to the porta potties. Mitigated by the beautiful flowers blooming near them!

Whole Foods Market recently held a film premiere of the documentary “Forks Over Knives” at the AFI Silver Theatre in Silver Spring, Maryland. Proceeds from the film were donated to the Capital Area Food Bank’s Farm Youth Initiative. 

Forks Over Knives is about how diet can alter the course of common diseases found in America.  The film chronicles patients who have chronic conditions from heart disease to diabetes, and the whole foods plant-based diet approach that doctors use to treat their ailments. 

After the film, there was a panel discussion with Rip Esselstyn, one of the leads in the film; Executive Producer Brian Wendel; Dr. Neal Barnard; and Alana Sugar, a certified nutritionist.

Tomatoes and peppers from Clagett Farm.

Slipping along icy sidewalks every morning on my walk to the Metro, I know I’m not the only person eagerly awaiting the first signs of spring. As a native Virginian, every year I look forward to the first spinach and strawberries, knowing that the local, seasonal produce will have been worth the wait.

But I’ve been twice as excited about spring since I came to the Capital Area Food Bank in October to manage the From Ground Up Fresh Produce Grant.  In 2010, the CAFB awarded this grant to nine of our partners.  Grantees went to Clagett Farm in Upper Marlboro, MD every other week to pick up hundreds of pounds of free, sustainably grown, chemical free produce to distribute to their clients.

It’s time for CAFB partners to look forward to spring with me—and apply for the 2011 FGU Fresh Produce Grant.  Applications can be found here are due February 18th.  Anyone with questions or requesting a paper copy can call or e-mail me at 202-529-5344 ext. 222. 

Warmer days at Clagett Farm. Photo by Roshani Kothari

Clagett Farm is a project of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, a farm that is as dedicated to protecting the Chesapeake Bay Watershed as it is to producing some of the most delicious vegetables I’ve ever tasted.  The more I learn about the health and environmental benefits of sustainably grown, chemical free produce and the economic benefits of Community Supported Agriculture, the more I like Clagett Farm.  But the reason I love Clagett Farm, and the reason I’ve been anticipating spring since Halloween, is their commitment to donating 40-50 percent of their vegetable production to the low-income community. In 2010, through programs like the FGU Fresh Produce Grant, Clagett Farm was able to donate 36,698 pounds of their high-quality produce to people who need it the most.

Last year, the HIV+ patients at the Carl Vogel Center and Damien Ministries; homeless men struggling with addiction at the Father McKenna Center; and clients of the Allen Chapel AME and Bread for the City food pantries benefited from the Fresh Produce Grant.  Clagett produce is nutrient-rich because it is harvested locally, safe because it’s free of chemicals, and a pleasure to eat because it is delicious.

I’m so excited that, when I get to cut into my first locally grown tomato this summer, I can do so knowing that I had a hand in getting the same quality produce onto the dinner tables of my neighbors in need.  If you’d like to help the CAFB distribute local produce, donate to Share the Harvest.  When the ice finally melts, consider coming out to Clagett Farm to volunteer for a day.

Through the FYI program, more than 150 children from Kids Cafe sites in D.C., Maryland and Virginia learned about the health benefits of incorporating eight servings of fruits and vegetables into their meals every day.  Each group of kids practiced making “packed snacks” by matching kid-friendly snack foods with fruits and vegetables they’re likely to encounter at school, home or their community center. 

So instead of eating plain salsa and chips, a “packed snack” adds peaches, black beans, corn and cheese to that store bought salsa and it is then served with whole wheat crackers.  Now that’s a snack that is good for you, tastes great (just ask the kids) and is very filling!

During field trips to Clagett Farm, the kids had the chance to harvest and taste-test veggies and herbs from the garden. And they worked together to create healthy snacks that included fruits and vegetables with other familiar ingredients.

All of these activities aim to increase children’s comfort level with eating fruits and vegetables.  By engaging kids with new tastes and textures, FYI hopes to increase the likelihood that they will gobble up at least eight servings of these essential foods on an everyday basis. This summer’s FYI participants had a lot of fun and we think they’ll head back to school ready to include fruits and vegetables with their meals whenever they have the chance.

Marian Peele, director of Agency Relations

 I’m growing 15 different types of herbs (all legal), cucumbers, tomatoes, zucchini and lots of perennials!  So talk to JuJu or Susan, they’ll give you lots of information and inspiration for you to start your own garden.    

I had the good fortune to run into the Mayor a few weeks ago as he campaigned in my neighborhood.  When I asked Mayor Fenty if he would pass the Healthy Schools Act, he claimed enthusiastically that as a champion for the District’s schoolchildren he “couldn’t wait to sign the Healthy Schools Act.” Let’s hope he keeps his word and moves the legislation forward!

The next step is to be sure that this bill is funded.  The Council is holding a Healthy Schools Act Revenue Hearing on May 12^th – watch for the details here.  We need to be at the Wilson Building in full force testifying about the importance of fully funding this bill.  On May 26^th, the Budget Support Act will be finalized.  The BSA houses the Council’s amendments to the Mayor’s proposed budget, including revenues for legislation like the Healthy Schools Act.

But let’s go back to the long, involved process that led to this piece of legislation.  As an advocate for more healthy, local and sustainable food in D.C. schools, my role was to reach out to the real experts here in the District who know school food.  I talked with food service providers, producers and distributors, parents, teachers, kids, and other stakeholders along the chain from seed to cafeteria tray.  I reached out to school food policy experts in other states, and on the national scale.  I asked them all the same question – how can state-level policy help us get more healthy, local, sustainable foods into Washington, DC schools?

I had conversations, emails, meetings, and conference calls.  And I wasn’t the only one – advocates and activists across the District gathered ideas, comments and concerns from their constituent bases.  Councilmember Cheh’s staff pulled these ideas together in an inclusive, transparent and quite commendable way.

This is an important piece of legislation for many reasons.  Like I said, creating the bill was transparent, open and inclusive. Second, the bill acknowledges that child hunger, obesity and environmental degradation are complex issues, and it tackles those issues from a number of different angles.  And third, Councilmember Cheh is dedicated to funding this bill.  Whether through a “soda tax,” or other means, she assures us that her office will not rest until the bill is fully funded and implemented.

And we as advocates won’t rest until the issues of child hunger, obesity, and environmental degradation are at bay.  We have a long road ahead, but this bill is one small step in a long, slow journey.

Co-taught by JuJu Harris and Susan Topping, the class is part of a three part series covering the basics of site assessment and garden planning and construction.  Information is also dispensed regarding local resources for free and low cost seeds and construction materials, vegetable planting schedules, and contacts for community gardening grants.  Interest and energy were high as folks shared their stories regarding their recently germinated seeds and techniques they’d already applied from what they’d learned in last week’s class.  Several plan to begin a gardening program with children at their sites, while others looked forward to sharing the seedlings and harvest with members of their congregations. 

Those who attended the workshop at a co-worker’s urging, or who seemed initially unsure about their “green thumb” were some of the most effusive by the class’ end.   Carrying pots of newly sown swiss chard, chives, and mesclun mix, the participants left with smiles on their faces, ready to share their nascent enthusiasm for gardening with staff and clients at their sites.