Five Schools Win LAUSD's "Farm To School" Field Trip Contest

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 24, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- In honor of Food Day, the Los Angeles Unified School District's (LAUSD) "I'M IN" campaign congratulates five faculty members and their respective campuses for winning the Farm to School Field Trip Contest, a program that will educate students first hand about where the food they eat in school comes from and where it's grown.  The following staff members each win a field trip (for up to 60 students) to a local farm where LAUSD sources its fresh fruits and vegetables as well as a $200 gift card for school supplies.

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"We thank the teachers for their commitment to educating students about nutrition and the importance of local, sustainable food," says David Binkle, director of Food Services at LAUSD.  "The field trips are invaluable because students will have a better understanding of the efforts we are making to ensure that we serve them the freshest food possible in our dining facilities." 

As a Good Food Leader, the LAUSD Board of Education passed the Good Food Procurement Resolution last year, pledging to ensure that all students have access to nutritious and wholesome food that are locally sourced with sound environmental practices.  Today, 75 percent of fresh fruits and vegetables served at Cafe LA, the district's dining facilities, are harvested within 200 miles of the District. Lean proteins, low fat dairy and even wheat are sourced locally.

To win the Farm to School Field Trip Contest, teachers submitted photos of their schools' working gardens and essays describing how the field trip would educate students about nutrition and local, sustainable food.  Contest rules and entry form were available by visiting www.iminlausd.com.  Entries submitted by Oct. 11, 2013 were evaluated based on the quality of the essay, how the field trip would creatively educate students about nutrition and how the field trip would positively impact the students. The field trips will be fulfilled next month just in time for harvest.

Research shows that students who eat nutritious meals in school earn higher test scores and tend to make healthier food choices throughout the day.  LAUSD has also reduced salt, added sugars, fats, and oils, as well as eliminated artificial additives in all its school meals to meet USDA standards. The District procures over $100 million annually in food and food supplies, serving 650,000 meals daily, with 114 million meals served during the 2012-2013 academic year.

LAUSD's "I'M IN" campaign is an all-inclusive program designed to raise awareness about the District's healthy meals to help fight off childhood obesity, as well as to encourage student attendance and dropout prevention.   For more information on the "I'M IN" campaign, visit www.facebook.com/ImInLAUSD

SOURCE Los Angeles Unified School District