Thursday, parents of students in all the schools in will have the opportunity to sample the greens delivered to the facilities by Working Landscapes, a Warren County-based nonprofit organization.
Working Landscapes fresh-cut collards will be served Thursday as part of the school system’s holiday meal.
While the menus will vary from school to school, the same vegetables will be served at each one and parents will be able to have a taste, the school system said.
Working Landscapes, a non-profit food hub, has been building farm to school supply chains and has worked with 16 school districts to bring locally grown, fresh-cut collards, kale, and cabbage into cafeterias.
The Chopped Produce Initiative, which is Working Landscapes’ produce processing program, is creating new ways for locally grown vegetables to reach schools and other institutional markets across Northeastern North Carolina.
The program buys produce from family farms in the region and chops and bags it at their vegetable processing facility located in downtown Warrenton.
The operation has handled nearly 100,000 pounds of produce since its establishment in 2013.
“Supporting local farms and providing fresh, healthy meals for our students is a top priority in Halifax County,” said Halifax County Schools Child Nutrition Director Joe Otranto. “Working Landscapes’ chopped products make it easy for our staff to prepare and serve local food and we are thrilled to partner with them to offer our students a fresh vegetable option during lunch.”
Carla Norwood, Working Landscapes’ executive director, has seen the project expand over the past three years. “The Chopped Produce Initiative started small. We worked with Warren County Schools to pilot the the program and tailored the product to meet the needs of school cafeterias.
“Since then, we have seen growth in demand from customers and interest from farmers looking for ways to diversify their farm income streams. Creating new ways for small farms to access markets, contributing to the revitalization of a rural town, and increasing access to healthy foods are all goals of Working Landscapes. Our partnership with Halifax County Schools highlights the potential impacts regional collaboration can have on a local food system.”
In addition to helping to put local produce on students’ plates, Working Landscapes also offers What’s Growing On, an educational program that promotes healthy and seasonal eating among elementary school students in the region.
Through this program, Working Landscapes has partnered with Halifax County elementary schools to offer farm-to-school training to teams of teachers, parents and cafeteria managers.