MASCHIO'S HOME
April 2010 Newsletter
Fresh, Local Foods |
Maschio's Food Services: Bringing Fresh, Local Foods Direct From the Field to the School Lunch Line!. Fresh, local foods grown right here in Northwest Jersey are available just around the corner. In fact, they are now available on your local school lunch menu!
The Foodshed Alliance, a Blairstown based grass roots non-profit organization, with the mission of "strengthening farming and community through locally-grown food", has joined together a dedicated group of local farmers into the BUY FRESH BUY LOCAL Northwest Jersey Chapter. Focused on building a local food system, one where our local farmers can make a viable living selling grown foods to the local community and where those foods are a product of sustainable agricultural practices. The BUY FRESH BUY LOCAL Northwest Jersey Chapter has targeted local schools as an important primary vehicle for fulfilling this goal.
We are proud to welcome Maschio's Food Services, Inc. as a non-farming food related BUY FRESH BUY LOCAL business partner. Maschio's Food has the unique capability of introducing locally grown products into our school cafeterias. The results of this partnership are already being made tangible.
Starting in March 2008, Best's Fruit Farm began apple deliveries to nearly a dozen Warren and Hunterdon County districts served by Maschio's. All BUY FRESH BUY LOCAL produce is labeled and marketed as locally grown products, enabling students and staff to make the connection between farm and food, and allowing them to experience quality, local foods grown within a 30 mile radius of the school!
As the spring growing season begins, look for salad greens and early season produce from BUY FRESH BUY LOCAL farms. By the time the 2008-2009 school year begins, the local crop of tomatoes, squash, peppers, beans and a wide array of other produce will be available from our BUY FRESH BUY LOCAL farmers.
Local, seasonal produce grown by farmers who are members of the school communities provides not only nutritious, healthy food for our children, but helps promote a strong local economy, helps to keep our prime agricultural lands in production, provides a positive environmental impact through agricultural stewardship and reconnects food and farm, field and table, eater and grower.
BUY FRESH BUY LOCAL farmers are dedicated to educating the next generation about the realities of growing and raising real food on a sustainable, local scale. School educational opportunities, including hands-on growing, farm-centered learning trips and educational materials providing resources for each of us to help us all play a role in building a local food system, will also be available to the districts served by Maschio's Food Services, as a component of the partnership.
Maschio's Food Services is at the forefront of promoting local foods as ongoing, regularly offered menu items. With the dedication of Maschio's Food Services and the BUY FRESH BUY LOCAL farmers, our children can eat meals which are more healthy, fresh and tasty.
Look for the BUY FRESH BUY LOCAL logos and labels on your school lunch line!
Buy Fresh Buy Local is a registered trademark of Foodroutes Network.
Also visit FarmToSchool.org.
