DOWN ON THE FARM

Recipe for Success believes that our children need to learn that their food doesn’t grow in drive thru windows and plastic wrapping; that Twinkie is not a vegetable. RfS wants to put Houston children back in touch with natural food from seed to plate. Three agriculture-based initiatives complement our core programming:

Recipe Kitchen

Modeled on the high-profile Edible School yard in Berkley, California, these teaching gardens have been installed in every pilot school to provide planting beds for every gtrade level and in some cases every classroom. They are available to students and their teachers all day long and after-school programs. RFS gardening staff teaches classes throughout the school day, providing students hands-on access to a full seed-to-plate curriculum. Compatible learning opportunities include:
• After-school Junior Master Gardener programs
• Evening & summer community programs for parents and children

New Hope Farms

Working with the Mayor’s office, New Hope Farms will identify and transform an abandoned urban property in Houston into a fully functioning organic farm managed by professionals, with the assistance of paid high-school students. In addition to farm labor, students will be given the opportunity to create and implement micro-business models to sell New Hope Farms produce within the neighborhood, to schools and to area business; and science students will be able to use the New Hope Farms for research projects.

Farm to School
Texas has year-round growing seasons and Houston is surrounded by dozens of small family farms producing a wide variety of food. RfS intends to take full advantage of this as a vehicle to get fresh food to Houston schoolchildren. Through our Healthy School Lunch and Farm-to-School initiatives, we will help pave the way for area farmers to provide fresh produce, meat & dairy products to the school lunch program. RfS will facilitate classroom presentations and school visits by Houston-area farmers and provide field trips to farms and ranches for Houston school children.