Through our project children will learn to grow, cook, and eat healthy foods, with ingredients they may not have been previously exposed to. Research and model seed-to table programs such as Edible SchoolyardNYC shows that when kids receive hands-on cooking guidance and are encouraged to try new things, they will likely influence their peers, share these recipes at home, and ask their parent/guardian to purchase more veggies in general. This program will change family eating habits, and decrease the chance of illnesses caused by poor nutritional choices.

We will also raise the consciousness of local kids and families regarding their choice to eat locally sourced foods. They not only will support local farmers, but also will decrease the environmental impacts of eating out of season produce.  Children will become ‘nutrition ambassadors’ to their peers and families, and change family eating habits. The excess food raised by the children will be distributed at our local food pantry, and the recipes that they cook in garden kids cook workshops will be shared with the many visitors who frequent the garden during those hours.

We aim to model a participatory community food justice model to meet the food needs of our neighbors. We have many garden members and host thousands of visitors per year.  We hope our local community gardeners, guests. and program participants choose to ‘eat local’, grow more food, share with their neighbors, contribute cultural recipes, and bring our nutrition and food justice literature to their homes, gardens, schools, and organizations.