Va. Beach trying to put local fruit on school plates

VIRGINIA BEACH

As Alexis Price walked down the lunch line at Shelton Park Elementary School, she was shocked to see the new addition to the usual peach and banana fruit selection.

"Strawberries?! Whoa!" Price said as she quickly grabbed a cup full of the bright berries. Her eyes lit up as she licked the whipped cream topping.

New on the menu at Virginia Beach Public Schools are locally grown strawberries. Well, sort of. They're from a farm in Clinton, N.C. Still, this is a sweet victory for school officials who for years have tried to replace prepackaged products with fresh local foods. "Local" is defined by the school district as foods grown within 400 miles of Virginia Beach.

Last year, the school district celebrated Virginia Farm to School Week, in which students sampled Virginia-grown products such as sweet potatoes from Franklin and cherry tomatoes from Mappsville, said Diana Shockley, a procurement specialist for the Office of Food Services. The program emphasized the importance of good nutrition and supporting local farms. But school officials say offering a locally grown item at school isn't as simple as it seems.

The district must compete with local grocers to get the freshest products, said Valerie Lewis, the nutrition and training coordinator for the department. And, she added, school is not in session during the summer months - usually the peak time for farmers.

The weather also can be a spoiler, Shockley added.

"Locally grown can be hard on an establishment if they have planned for a product to be on their menu and then a hurricane or a nor'easter comes and destroys the product," she said. The recent cold snap, for example, almost made it impossible to get the strawberries they bid on, she added.

Finding local foods at an affordable rate is also a challenge, Shockley said. The 3,200 pounds of strawberries delivered last week cost the district nearly $7,000.

Shockley said the department will continue to research local products, but "we have to be realistic when it comes to price."

Other school districts are tapping into the trend as well. For more than 12 years, Suffolk Public Schools have offered students strawberries from a farm in Virginia. And Virginia apples are served at Norfolk Public Schools.

School officials agree that the move to offer locally grown products on the lunch menu is a relevant one. A handful of Virginia Beach schools - including Shelton Park Elementary - have nutrition clubs where students learn about healthy eating options and how to prepare nutritious meals.

Currently, vegan and baked foods are on the school menus, Lewis said.

Last month teachers, students and parents gathered to plant flowers and vegetables for a community garden behind the school. Cafeteria manager Darren Stallings said the goal is for the community to care for the crops over the summer. When fall comes, he said, they hope to use the vegetables that are grown.

Robert Pellek, a parent whose 6-year-old daughter is a first-grader at the school, is glad the school will offer local strawberries. At home he cooks foods grown in his family's garden.

"Obviously, the food will be healthier and fresher," Pellek said. "Plus, we can teach them to give back to our local economy. It's a win-win."

Jaedda Armstrong, (757)

222-5110, jaedda.armstrong@

pilotonline.com