How farm to school programs help foster community

Farm to cafeteria programs are skyrocketing. In 2015, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) found that 42% or 42,587 schools in the United States had a program where they were buying locally grown produce. These programs, combined with farm to school activities such as farm tours, were especially effective with pre-K students. But less frequently mentioned is the engagement of food workers in the successful roll out and maintenance of farm to school programs. Interestingly, school cafeteria workers are rarely considered change agents in the campaigns to increase healthy food access or reducing childhood obesity. In Minnesota, this came to light when Philando Castile, a cafeteria worker at the J.J. Hill Montessori Magnet School in Saint Paul, was tragically shot and killed. After his death, the students eloquently spoke about the powerful relationships they had formed with him everyday while they were getting their school lunches. “[A coworker] said that [Philando] Castile would fist-bump kids, make sure they didn’t have food they shouldn’t have and pushed the healthy stuff, too…“You’re still hungry?” she recalled him saying to them. “Well, you didn’t take any of the vegetables.”

Cafeteria workers are beacons of healthy food and culture in our society, and along with teachers, parents and local farmers, are critical components of a successful farm to school program. In late August, Pakou Hang, the Executive Director of the Hmong American Farmers Association (HAFA), led a training with cafeteria workers at the McKnight Early Childhood Family Development Center in Minneapolis– part of the Head Start program in Hennepin County, Minnesota. As part of the training, the food workers were asked to reflect on a series of questions focused on culture, family, memory and identity. They were asked to share: what is a sight, a sound or a smell that they associated with their culture; and to describe the houses they grew up in; as well as a ritual or a common practice their families engaged in. While none of the questions were directly about food, food was the centerpiece of the responses. Many of the participants spoke about how buying local fruits and vegetables was really important to them because they wanted to feed the children healthy food. One of the workers said, “I really want to serve food that reflects the ethnic heritage of the people in this building,” and another said “food brings everyone together.”

HAFA’s work with the Head Start program in Hennepin County is just the latest in the farmer organization’s efforts to increase procurement of local produce by learning institutions. Since 2014, HAFA has also been working with Ramsey County Head Start to engage its food workers, teachers and parents around eating healthy food and annually, over 250 pre-K students come to the HAFA Farm, a 155-acre incubator and research farm, to learn about soil health, good bugs and bad bugs and how food is grown (underground, above ground and on trellises). When asked why working with cafeteria workers is so important, Pakou says, “I think cafeteria workers are a lot like small farmers in this country. They are critical but invisible and under appreciated parts to the food system and as an organization that lifts up small farmers, we also lift up our food workers.”