Developing Excitement for Healthy Eating – One Class at a Time

By Emily Yu, Chief Partnerships & Programs Officer

Food is an incredibly powerful medium with which to educate, innovate, and connect. The team at FRESHFARM uses this premise in their commitment to a more resilient and equitable food system, which includes the design and implementation of FoodPrints—a groundbreaking, evidence-based program where educators teach hands-on lessons that get students excited about growing, preparing and enjoying fresh, local whole foods. 

A Newman’s Own Foundation 2024 Food Justice for Kids Prize recipient, FoodPrints has been growing the next generation of food citizens since 2005. This unique model brings science, math and social studies to life for elementary school students through food education and real-world experiences with the goal of improving health outcomes for children. 

During a recent visit to one of the 21 Washington, DC, public elementary schools partnering with FRESHFARM FoodPrints, my colleague Christina Chauvenet and I had the opportunity to see the team, curriculum, and students, in action. The FRESHFARM instructor started the session by inviting students to consider their environment and local climate. Next, we broke out into small groups that rotated through three types of stations typical of FoodPrints classes: a culinary station making no-bake energy bars and a rainbow kale salad; a gardening station planting and watering seedlings in the outdoor school vegetable garden; and an academic-connected learning station creating a poster to explain how pollutants affect the environment that students would present to their classmates.  

Of all the wonderful lessons learned during this FoodPrints class, there was one in particular that sparked my imagination: “Don’t Yuck My Yum.” The FoodPrints team uses this saying to remind participating students that it is okay if you do not like the taste of a certain food—but  if you don’t like something, don’t disparage it or anyone else who does like it. This powerful refrain is an important life lesson that encourages appreciation for cultural and traditional foods as well as changing food preferences (they may like the food the next time they try it!) This is emblematic of the FoodPrints positive and non-pressured approach to food and nutrition education. 

FoodPrints’ Impact 

What impact has FoodPrints made on participants?  Evaluation and research demonstrate that outcomes include greater knowledge of, access to, and willingness of participating students to eat nutritious foods, and greater engagement in schools. It provides a “feasible and sustainable” program model for contemporary nutrition education. Examples of its impact include: 

• Supporting an increase in participants’ appreciation for fresh food, openness to trying new foods, and confidence to make informed food decisions. 
• Making a lasting impact on students beyond their time in the FoodPrints classroom, with FoodPrints alum reporting continued interest in fresh food and in cooking as they enter adulthood. 
• Providing a significant return on investment in the areas of health, academic achievement, whole-child education, environmental responsibility. 
• Helping students develop characteristics of “responsibility” and “autonomy” through the ability to complete cooking tasks on their own, and adapt recipes based on ingredients available in their homes.  

Get Involved

• Learn more about FRESHFARM and FoodPrints 
• Read their 2024 Annual Report 
• Watch family-friendly cooking skills videos 
• Explore the free and flexible FoodPrints curriculum