Skip to content

Students also learning about the economic side of food

The official beginning of spring is not far off and I can hardly wait. If you were lucky enough to get out and about last weekend, you probably enjoyed yourself.

The official beginning of spring is not far off and I can hardly wait. If you were lucky enough to get out and about last weekend, you probably enjoyed yourself. Feeling actual heat from the sun was something special and I want to feel more of that soon.

The milder weather has seen a lot of activity on the school farms in Delta and hundreds of kids have been busy mapping their seed choices and getting the seed in the ground. We have planted radish, kale, spinach, peas, beans and spuds and we just sowed some early carrots. At Farm Roots in Boundary Bay, the student farmers have been benefactors from the community again early in the year and have received manure from Jerry Keulen at Seaview Farms and seed potatoes from Jack Zellwegger.

There are also some dynamic partnerships developing in the community that will see the Farm Roots kids working with four mentor/partner businesses so that the students will gain a better understanding of the economics and business aspects of the food economy. More on that as the partnerships evolve.

As for the little guys, they are also learning a little bit about math and the economic side of food. We work on the equation that presents itself when a $3 pack of seeds can yield a thousand carrots. The kids are told how much a bag of carrots costs in a grocery store and they do the math from there so they can convince mom and dad to grow a few things in the backyard or in containers to have fresh veggies on hand.

They get this which is cool to witness.

The kids are also taught the nutritional value of the food they grow and eat.

Small scale farming is easier to maintain organically but large scale operations often use pesticides, chemical fertilizers and other agents designed to promote or stunt growth of a particular plant. And then there are GMO’s. Genetically modified organisms, have been designed over the years to protect against disease and increase yields.

“The potential benefits are foods that are tastier, more nutritious and resistant to diseases and droughts,” notes LiveScience. 

The pros and cons of GMO’s are hotly contested. A recent article form the Organic Consumers Association states that, “Approximately 85 percent of Americans do not consume the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s recommended intakes of the most important vitamins and minerals necessary for proper physical and mental development.” Opponents of GMO’s refer to them as ‘FrankenFoods’ yet in countries where growing food is difficult, GMO crops have helped to feed millions of people who would otherwise starve.

The article also claims that, “Factory farmed GMO food is a public disaster” and is responsible for chronic disease, allergies and a host of other medical conditions that cost the health care system in the United States billions of dollars.

Approximately 90 per cent of all canola, soy and corn in North America comes from genetically modified seed.

I can only suggest that we hone in on nutrition and realize that the business of food and farming is ultimately complex and that there is no room for zealotry on either side of the equation.