Students at Thunder Valley K-8 in Frederick were given a rare opportunity on Wednesday — trying meat raised by their fellow St. Vrain Valley School District students.
The nachos served for Wednesday’s lunch at the school included pork from pigs that were raised at the district’s Career Elevation and Technology Center. And, if students were more inclined to eat Wednesday’s vegetarian option, they could still be sure that its fresh ingredients were locally sourced.
This week, St. Vrain Valley and Boulder Valley school districts hosted educational events for Colorado Proud School Meal Day. The statewide effort recognizes the importance of nutritious meals served in schools and highlights local agricultural providers.
“We’re trying to connect our kids to their food system,” said Theresa Spires, school wellness coordinator for SVVSD.
After lunch on Wednesday, students at Thunder Valley K-8 met farmers who grow the produce used in SVVSD school lunches. One of the school district’s partners, Sprout City Farms, brought basil and raspberries for students to smell and taste.
Thunder Valley K-8 students also got to see some animals thanks to high schoolers in the Agricultural Sciences program through CETC. Agricultural Sciences students brought goats, rabbits, a turkey and a horse.
The Agricultural Sciences program has around 180 students, all of whom are also required to participate in FFA. All of the animals at Thunder Valley K-8 were either owned by CETC students or came from the CETC school farm at 1200 S. Sunset St. in Longmont.
Maddie Hughes, a senior at Mead High School and FFA participant, said she wants to introduce younger students to agriculture and teach them how to take care of animals. Eating a meal featuring pork raised at a local school farm, for instance, helps accomplish this, she explained.
“It’s so interesting to see exactly where your food comes from,” Hughes said. “We know exactly what that pig was fed, exactly where it was, the conditions it was in. We know that the kids that are eating it, and ourselves, are getting fed the best food they could possibly have.”
In Boulder, students were also enjoying pork at Casey Middle School. The school celebrated Colorado Proud School Meal Day on Friday by highlighting one of the Boulder Valley School District’s food partners, Tamales by La Casita. While students ate tamales for lunch, they could talk directly with the woman who helps make them — former Colorado state Sen. Paula Sandoval.
Sandoval has been supplying her tamales to BVSD schools for roughly 10 years. Her handmade tamales, which are prepared in Denver, come in two varieties: red chile with pork, and green chile with cheese. The green chile and cheese tamale, served with refried beans, was on par with any dish guests would find at a street festival or food truck.
Sandoval said she wanted to participate in the Colorado Proud School Meal Day event to show kids how much food comes from their state.
“It gives them a sense of what’s possible in Colorado,” Sandoval said.
Casey Middle School students could also look at a map of Colorado showing where BVSD sources its food. The map showed carrots, apples, chicken and sandwich buns based all over the state, from the Denver metro area to the Western Slope.
“I think food, generally, is taken for granted,” said Miriam Holleb, farm to school specialist for BVSD. “If we could be out here every day celebrating the work that our kitchen staff are doing and how incredibly delicious and wholesome our lunches are, we would be.”
SVVSD, BVSD students learn about local agriculture
