Jodi Summit
TOWER – Where is our food from? How is it made? What are its environmental impacts? What can we do to reduce the environmental impact of the food that we eat?
Vermilion Country School students explored these and other questions as part of an environmental education project that was undertaken across the school.
“We are so far removed from where our food comes from,” said VCS science teacher Paula Herbranson.
Students watched a documentary that featured a Canadian chef and his quest to find out where all his restaurant’s food was coming from, as well as finding ways to reduce the environmental impact of his purchasing decisions.
Each student then chose a food product to research and spend a few weeks researching its production, environmental impacts, and what can be done to make it more sustainable.
The project’s goals were to help students see the problems and suggest solutions.
Students were given the option to present their research in any medium. Many students chose traditional posters and brochures. Others created poems, songs or podcasts.
A small group of judges comprised of school staff and volunteers as well as a peer judge, reviewed the projects. The presentation included questions from the judges.
“Most of the students did a really nice job,” said Herbranson.
Students were often surprised by the many ways food production can affect the environment.
Many students stated that their research made them more aware of the choices they make when purchasing food.
“I learned some things I didn’t want to know,” said Dakota Hanninen, who researched the poultry industry. She spoke out about how chickens that have been injured are taken from farms. “It’s so sad.”
Dakota, however, stated that chicken manure is beneficial for soil health.
Brandi Strange conducted research on almonds and found that around 80 percent of our crop is California-grown. Tree-grown fruits and nuts can be more environmentally friendly as they don’t need to be replanted every year. However, these trees need a lot of water which is becoming more of a problem due to California’s frequent droughts.
Alyssa costello discovered that peaches require a lot of water but can be grown in areas with sufficient rainfall. But the pesticides and fertilizers used can have significant environmental consequences.
Nearly every project demonstrated the complexity of our commercial food production system. Students do get a chance to grow some of their own food, using the school’s solar greenhouse.
And one day, hopefully, some of these students will be working to find better ways to grow food at large scale.