Local Matters Impacts Children Through Food
Local Matters is a Columbus-based non-profit organization designed to help the community learn about food, and not just how to eat it, but how food can impact lives. Their mission is to teach people good practices with food that will in turn help our health, the environment, and the economy. They have an amazing program called Food is Elementary based off of a curriculum designed by Dr. Antonia Demas, which focuses on instruction that teaches children in grades kindergarten through second about good nutrition, where food comes from, and how to prepare it.
“The Food is Educators Program works very well at Brookside as it integrates into our Community Vegetable Garden and our Schoolyard Enhanced Learning approach to teaching. This program is also very aligned with Ohio’s Educational Standards and gives children direct experiences with food and preparing food,” said Principal Monroe of Brookside Elementary in Worthington. Monroe introduced the program to the school in January 2009 and the students love it. “We get to bake every week!” said a very excited first grader.
A team from Local Matters goes into a school once a week and introduces various foods. For example, one week the lesson is about food in Mexico. The students learn how to make black bean dip, guacamole, salsa, and use multi-grain chips and vegetables as dippers. Local Matters brings all of the necessities with them for the lesson: the instructor, the food, the preparation devices, the books or music if appropriate, and the love for kids. The students get to help with all of the food prep, ask questions, and of course - eat! Lessons in culture, growing practices, and sustainable living are also incorporated. There are many schools in the Columbus, Worthington, and Circleville school districts, CDC Headstart and Learning Never Ends that have instituted the Food is Elementary program.
“It is so rewarding when a parent tell us that they are making better choices at home. We know we are making a difference,” said Trish Dehnbostel, Programming Manager of Local Matters. Trish heads up the program and explained that the lessons are designed to cross curriculum to help students make connections. For instance, reading a recipe and doing measurements is an instruction in math. The recipes are sent home to the parents on an informational sheet, and the sheet also includes suggestions for getting your kids to try new foods.
Take a look at a few helpful tips:
- Involve your children in meal preparation.
- Model healthy eating for your family.
- Don’t use reward or pressure to encourage children to eat new and healthy foods.
Local Matters doesn’t stop with the Food is Elementary program, they can also help implement a school garden. Teaching children from the ground up about food is a great way to introduce and hopefully maintain a healthy lifestyle. If you would like more information on the Food is Elementary program or for volunteer information with Local Matters, please check out the Local Matters website at www.local-matters.org or contact Trish Dehnbostel at trish@local-matters.org or 614-263-5662. Information about Dr. Antonia Demas’ curriculum can be found at www.foodstudies.org.
Kristin Marks is a Columbus Underground contributor, and can be found blogging about kid-friendly activities in Central Ohio over at cbusmom.com. She can be reached at Kristin@cbusmom.com.
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March 16th, 2010 at 9:54 am
Local Matters also do some other programs with adults and community outreach. They sometimes use one of our kitchens at work for a program and I’ve tasted a pasta recipe and a truffle recipe (both vegan!) that they taught once — A-MAZING. A big thumbs up to the work they do.
March 16th, 2010 at 3:07 pm
In their own words, Local Matters “believes that food connects us to some of the most important issues of our time.” They’re making an impact in just a few short years. I really appreciate their support of community gardening in places like the Hilltop. I also like the educational programs they do, including this winter’s excellent film series at the Wexner. The documentary film, Our Daily Bread, is still running through my brain, influencing my food choices, daily.
March 16th, 2010 at 11:53 pm
The photos complement the text content, and remind me of how visuals can enhance the impact of a story like this. Can any of us render textually the expression of joy in the face of the child eating the lettuce and pasta ? PM me if you have an answer; I tend to lose track of these threads.
Everybody requires food, regardless of how we define ourselves politically, sociologically, or otherwise. As a reporter, food issues interest me because food connects with social and environmental issues quite readily.
It connects well with our enjoyment of life and is a constant reminder of the common ground I share with friend and foe alike.
March 18th, 2010 at 11:07 am
I just wish they did programs in schools other than Clintonville and Worthington where the kids are already eating better than most. Maybe they could come to Franklinton or The Hilltop USA and do some programming. I think that would make more of an impact. My guess is that the $100+ per pupil fee that LM collects might make it difficult for those schools to participate.
March 18th, 2010 at 12:14 pm
TomOver makes an interesting point about food. Thanks for that insight. It goes well with this one: anthropologist Paul Durrenberger once said to me that food is an important aspect of a society and should be studied because you really don’t know a lot about any group of people until you know how they acquire and distribute food and feed themselves.
March 18th, 2010 at 3:38 pm
Parker, is there a book or two by Durrenberger you’d recommend ? I think Michael Jones with Local Matters would like to expand the school programs. But things like that take shape when people step forward and help to make it happen. But yes , there are parts of town where the need is greater. By the way, Four Seasons City Farms has garden sites on the East Side, and there are others working on the West Side. I think the guy that own Rain Brothers is working out there–Jonathan Meyer.
March 18th, 2010 at 7:30 pm
Responding to the post from Parker (posted 3/18/10), much of Local Matters’ programming is directed to underserved communities, including its work with CDC Headstart and Learning Never Ends. Food justice is an integral part of Local Matters’ mission.
March 18th, 2010 at 10:01 pm
Hi Parker:
Thanks for your thoughts regarding our Food is Elementary Curriculum and your desire to see it expand beyond elementary schools in Clintonville and Worthington.
I’d like to respond by saying that the children in these schools do not eat better than children in other schools. Please note that 1 in 3 children are predicted to get diabetes in their lifetime (1 in 2 if you’re African-American or Hispanic) and the current generation of children are the first generation EVER whose life expectancy is predicted to be less than that of their parents. As you can see, all children are vulnerable regardless of zip code.
You will be interested to know that Local Matters just entered into a partnership with the Childhood Development Council of Franklin County Head Start to expand our program into all 25 of their facilities over the next 3 years. These facilities are located in Linden, the Near East Side, Franklinton, Weinland Park and the Northside and serve many of our children most in need. This expansion will allow us to reach an additional 3000 children per week.
Local Matters is funded by grants, private donors and corporate sponsors and are currently working on a national, state and local level to make our 28 week, whole food curriculum available to all children. Our current cost per child per year is about $180.00…a real bargain when you consider that treating diabetes and all the chronic diseases associated with it and obesity average over $20,000.00 per person per year.
What can you do? Please consider becoming one of the 1000 Friends of Local Matters. For just $10 per month ($120 annually), you can help us create a healthy community through the lens of food and make local, healthy food available to everyone on a equal basis.
Be well.
March 19th, 2010 at 12:46 am
Thanks for the great response and information, Michael!
March 19th, 2010 at 10:42 am
Thanks for sharing that Michael. Your post really told me a lot about Local Matters. I don’t know much about “food ecology” and honestly just learned what that meant. I think a conversation about what you are doing is so helpful to those of us not on the inside and not familiar with the workings and lingo.
Having been friends with Trish Dehnbostel for so many years, I know about the work you have all been doing since before Local Matters and with Local Matters. These conversations online really illuminate the ideas and workings in a concrete way for me and I hear about you all the time. Imagine how valuable this is for people who have no idea what you guys do.
March 19th, 2010 at 3:57 pm
Glad my comments sparked some interest. I work and do a good deal of agroecosystems and sustainability work and so am very familiar with these types of programs as well as food security issues. I remember when local matters was a farmer-chef network at Ohio State.
Thanks for responding, Michael. It is true that healthy food options are an issue in many schools. Those are national statistics within which there are pockets of greater need. My point wasn’t to debate whether Local Matters’ work is valid, appropriate, or otherwise. My comment was not meant as a jab but a valid critique (not criticism) of a good program. It’s good to hear there are plans to branch into lower-income neighborhoods. I know there are challenges to be had in doing so, not the least of which will be confronting fresh food access in urban food deserts.
March 19th, 2010 at 4:02 pm
@TomOver: Relevant to the livestock production, Paul Durrenberger and Kendall Thu have a good book entitled “Pigs, Profits and Rural Communities” that explores the relationships among politics, agricultural subsidies and policies, and local farm and non farm residents in Iowa. Paul has other major work on Icelandic and Thai rural communities, as well as the Teamsters and SEIU.
March 20th, 2010 at 4:52 pm
i have been volunteering at indianola food is elementary and it has brought my daughter and i so much closer. i am thrilled to see her excitement about trying and making new foods! she is very proud to be able to talk about what the different vitamins in food do to her body. she can identify ingredients and talk about how to prepare them. such am empowering experience at such a young age!!!
kudos to you local matters! you are educating so many young minds helping them become food conscious responsible adults!!