Bartow School System Wins Golden Radish Award

CARTERSVILLE, GA -- You wouldn’t want to eat a Golden Radish, but you wouldn't mind receiving one every year from Georgia’s Departments of Agriculture, Education and Public Health, University of Georgia Cooperative Extension and Georgia Organics.

That's the trend the Bartow County School System is experiencing, as school leaders accepted their third Golden Radish Award this week. They were recognized at the gold level for outstanding farm to school programs during the 2016-2017 school year.

"Our lunchroom workers are unsung heroes," said Bartow Schools Superintendent Dr. John Howard. "They work really hard to get a lot of homegrown food into our schools and onto plates for our children. In the last three years, we’ve went from the bronze level to the gold level, and now we have our sights on reaching the platinum level. One of our goals this year is to plant a garden at every school."

Lunchrooms across the district served up close to 2 million meals that included locally grown items, and
they’re on track to serve even more this year. Roasted Parmesan corn and cinnamon roasted chickpeas
were just two kid-tested and school-approved side dishes. South Central Middle School even used bell
peppers from their school garden for their mouth-watering lo mein recipe.

The Bartow County School System also uses farm to school programs to teach academic standards. At Clear Creek Elementary School, students divide into teams of fishery technicians, botanists and engineers. Utilizing the Aquaponics Lab, they learn from each other in farm to school STEM lessons.

“Not only are we trying to support the local economy through local food purchases, we are giving students the fuel they need ton perform well in their classes," said Bartow County Director of Nutrition Services Pam Blakeney. "I support the Department of Public Health and their research that shows healthy eating is key to brain development."

Seventy-five school districts participated in farm to school programs last year and broke records.
Collectively, according to Georgia Organics, they served more than 97 million meals that featured locally
grown food, tended to more than 800 school gardens, and taught more than 7,000 standards-based
lessons.

Image via Georgia Organics