Cafeteria Chronicles: Ashwaubenon School District (Green Bay, WI)
School gardens aren’t limited to districts in a warm climate.
Since cold weather lasts most of the school year at Ashwaubenon School District in Green Bay, WI, Child Nutrition Director Kaitlin Tauriainen decided to purchase hydroponic growing towers for the district. In addition to the school gardens located outside, the hydroponic gardens offer an opportunity for students to learn about where food comes from, including the difference in taste with freshly grown and harvested food.
The team at Ashwaubenon credits students enrolled in Life Skills classes for their success with hydroponic gardening, who help plant or clean three times each week. Two weeks after planting, the seeds germinate into sprouts that eventually become lettuce for the district’s salad bars. Farm to School Educator Emily Cowles takes each students’ talents into account when dividing up tasks for the gardens.
“…they’re learning so many real-world skills that are going to help them in the future”
Students feel a sense of responsibility for the plants they grow and take pride in seeing the fruits of their labor. As a result, Life Skills students are eager to join the crew in maintaining the gardens and also enjoy the farm-fresh taste of their harvest. Tauriainen notes the beans and lettuce specifically have a distinct taste that students love.
“I eat salad every day at lunch… it’s a lot better than just having it store bought”
The success of the hydroponic gardens is clear, with 300 pounds of lettuce being harvested every 8 weeks, and the product stays fresh for up to a month. Taking into account the cost of maintaining the hydroponic towers, the district estimates saving about $2 on every head of lettuce they grow. Tauriainen is grateful for the early support she received also, noting many of the administrative staff were familiar with how simple hydroponic growing was, and the benefits for students. Now the district is growing so much they can feed students all school-year long.
In addition to the hydroponic lettuce, the school gardens located outside led to a surplus of herbs, snap peas, tri-color beans, cucumbers, tomatoes, bell peppers, jalapeño peppers and strawberries. So Tauriainen reached out to the local farmers market as a solution for their surplus. On Wednesday nights in the summer, the school sets up a booth to sell their produce to the local community. The profits from the farmers market help to cover the cost of seeds and maintenance of the gardens, and the community loves seeing the school-grown food.
“We’ve gotten a great response from the community like, oh my gosh you’re growing this and the kids are eating this at lunch?”
Aside from managing the school gardens, Cowles visits elementary school classes to teach younger students about how food grows, including a sampling of lettuce grown at school to take home and share with their families. It’s no surprise the district earned the Healthy Meals Incentives (HMI) Innovation in Nutrition Education Award for all of their efforts. When asked what advice they have for other districts, Tauriainen recommends involving students in your nutrition education program, while Cowles recommends setting clear goals with documented processes to keep your garden successful.
Kudos to the team at Ashwaubenon for leading the way in school nutrition!
Stay tuned for more Cafeteria Chronicles stories from school districts nationwide. Check out our Cafeteria Chronicles Blog for more inspiring school nutrition transformations!
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This material is based upon work that is supported by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service. USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender.
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