OPERATIONS
MONETT R-1 SCHOOL DISTRICT: FROM FARMS AND GREENHOUSES TO STUDENTS’ PLATES
LOCAL BEEF, FRESH GREENHOUSE GREENS AND OTHER LOCAL INGREDIENTS ARE FIXTURES ON THE MENU.
T he farm-to-table movement has been permeating schools from C&U to elementary for a few years. But at Monett R-1 School District in Mon- ett, Missouri, students’ meals aren’t just local farm-to-school. They’re also on-campus-greenhouse-to- school, cattle-ranch-to-school and so much more. For Food Service Director Ralph Meredith, it’s the only way to attain the true meaning of “fresh.” “I can order fresh vegetables from my supplier, but when you open up the box, the cucumbers are coated in in wax so they'll last longer,” Meredith says, “That’s the process, and it can never be quite as fresh as we really wanted.” Spurred by this shortfall, the BY JULIANNE PEPITONE
Monett foodservice team has em- ployed several initiatives to bring truly fresh produce and meat to students’ plates: a district-owned greenhouse, participation in a pro- gram that connects local ranch- ers with schools for beef donations, and soon possibly buying bulk pro- duce from local Missouri farmers. LESSONS FROM THE GREENHOUSE The greenhouse is the newest of these programs, and its evolution is still ongoing. Meredith and his team have learned several lessons about the process since FSD report- ed on the greenhouse’s launch last May . Built by Amish artisans in Ar- kansas, the structure was built with help from a U.S. Department of Ag- riculture (USDA) grant worth about $15,000. The district chipped in an
extra approximately $5,000. One team member runs the greenhouse and the raised beds outside, which grow largely tomatoes and cucum- bers in addition to lettuce, squash, zucchini, jalapenos, bell peppers and pumpkins. “We reasoned that we’d be able to offset some of our costs when it comes to the meal offerings at dif- ferent school levels,” Meredith says. The team serves about 1,800 meals to Monett’s preschool through high school students. The greenhouse has provided leafy lettuce for Monett’s ever-pop- ular chicken wraps, slicing toma- toes for burgers and cherry toma- toes for chef’s salads, jalapenos for taco day, and lots of miscellaneous variety for staff salad bars. “We’ve saved probably a cou- ple thousand dollars, easily,” Mer-
FSD QUARTERLY
Q3 2024
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PHOTOS COURTESY OF MONETT R-1 SCHOOL DISTRICT
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