BY JAKE PALMATEER
STAFF WRITER
DELHI _ Local food was on
the menu Wednesday at Delaware
Academy.
High school students sampled
meatloaf, mashed potatoes,
vegetable casserole, beet
yogurt dip, apple crisp and
maple yogurt, all made with
ingredients produced within 50
miles of Delhi.
The lunch was presented
by Farm Catskills, a notfor-
profit membership group
that supports and encourages
local agriculture with the aim
of “building sustainable communities
in a working landscape.”
Senior J.J. Darling, 17, said
the food was delicious.
“It’s been a surprise,”
Darling said. “I wish we could
have it every day.”
The meal was part of a day of
programming
at the school
centered on
how America
gets its food.
Students
viewed the
film, “Food
Inc.” and
participated
in discussion
groups.
“What we are hoping for is
that kids critically think about
food,” said Amy Kenyon, president
of Farm Catskills. “Locally
produced food is nutritious.
It tastes better. It doesn’t
travel as far. It keeps dollars in
the community.”
Food for a typical American
family’s dinner travels about
1,500 miles to get to the table,
Kenyon said.
Kenyon and other members
of Farm Catskills helped serve
students, staff and faculty at
Delaware Academy.
The meatloaf was made using
ground beef from Hamden
farmer Tom Hutson.
The mashed potatoes came
from Snyder’s Farm in
Delhi.
The vegetable casserole was
prepared using products from
Lucky Dog Farm in Hamden,
Carrot Barn in Schoharie and
Brovetto’s Dairy in Harpersfield.
The beet yogurt
dip used ingredients
from Carrot Barn and
Sunrise Family Farms
of Norwich. The apple
crisp was made from
apples from Middlefield
Orchards. The
maple yogurt used
ingredients from Sunrise
Family Farms and
Paul’s Maple Products.
“It’s easier to engage
kids with their taste
buds,” Kenyon said.
Kenyon said the
project was conceived
in part by Delaware
Academy senior Shy
Parenteau, who attended
a board meeting of
Farm Catskills as part
of her participation in
government class.
“She got talking
about school food and
wanting to see (Food
Inc.),” Kenyon said.
The effort was assisted
by Stone & Thistle
Farm, Good Cheap
Food, the Quarter Moon
Café, Liz Sigler of Farm
Catskills and a host of
volunteers, organizers
said.
Parenteau, whose
mother is on the board
of Farm Catskills, said
the group was looking
at ways to reach out to
the community and having
an event like this
could help with that.
“Of course, we love to
eat,” Parenteau said of
her classmates.
Parenteau said she
thought the day was a
success.
“Everyone loved it,”
she said. “I’m hoping
that everyone realized
how important it is to
eat local.”
Kenyon said Farm
Catskills is interested
in doing similar events
elsewhere.
“This is something we
might hope to do with
other schools,” Kenyon
said.
Schools are required
to follow purchasing
procedures that limit
their ability to buy locally
produced foods,
according to Farm
Catskills. The group
is seeking changes to
those procedures.
