I love buying from the local farmers. It feels good to support our local economy while feeding my family delicious seasonal produce. My kids get a chance to try new foods and do fun craft projects. It’s so much better than a trip to the grocery store. The whole family looks forward to our trip to the Market!” – LF4LK participant

On-Demand Field Trips

Offering teachers and youth program facilitators the opportunity to supplement their curriculum while offering a rich, fun Market experience for the youth, on-demand field trips provide:

  • Brief introduction to the Market’s history and an informal QnA;
  • A farmer will speak on a topic that matches the curriculum;
  • Age-appropriate scavenger hunt, featuring farmers and seasonal produce.

This platform allows us to reach beyond Santa Fe Public Schools to offer an engaging experience to a broad cross-section of youth throughout New Mexico.

Power of Produce (POP Club)

This program takes place at Tuesday del Sur Markets in July and early August. Participants will get:

  • $2 in tokens at every Market each youth attends, to purchase their own fresh produce;
  • Hands-on experiential activities for youth (ages 3-17) and their parents/guardians/trusted adult;
  • Two Bite Club incentivizes youth trying new things. Each week the Two Bite Club will be done in conjunction with Market Fresh Cooking and the samples offered there.

Participation will be tracked via a passport. Local Food For Local Kids encourages family participation and repeat visits to the Market, building a foundation for long-term buying and eating habits.

Many thanks to the Oregon City Farmers Market, who started the POP Club in 2011.

About

In New Mexico, 31% of children are living in poverty and are food-insecure. Our youth must deal with poor nutrition and high rates of obesity, which negatively impacts cognitive development and can lead to a lifetime of health issues. Research shows that family and school nutrition programs have a strong influence on children’s willingness to try fruits and vegetables.

In 2017, we launched a new approach to our children’s program: Local Food for Local Kids. This program incorporates “on demand” field trips from local schools and out-of-school programs, and it includes the Farmers Market Coalition’s Power of Produce (POP) Club, which gives kids the Market experience while also engaging the whole family. This program helps establish the foundation for a lifetime of healthy, locally-based eating habits.

In 2017, we hosted 18 field trips for 528 youth. POP Club engaged 121 families. Of these, 49 were new to the Farmers’ Market.

History

The first iteration of our children’s program was funded by a grant from Partners in Education, and was created and operated as a pilot in 2011 in collaboration with by Laura McCann, R.D., L.D.

A variety of logistical challenges led us to shift our focus for this program in 2016.  As we researched options for developing a more holistic program, we worked with Cochiti and Santo Domingo Pueblos, summer camps, and school groups to provide organized visits to the Market. We provided a brief history of the Market, scavenger hunts, and farmer talks to approximately 300 students. Students from our neighboring school, Tierra Encantada, visited the Market multiple times, focusing their learning on northern New Mexico’s agricultural practices, water and land access, climate change, and the balance each farmer must maintain amid ever-changing circumstances.

With the support, wisdom, and wealth of organizational history of our Program Committee, we are excited to launch a new approach to our children’s program in 2017: Local Food for Local Kids. This program will be two-fold, incorporating the “on demand” field trips from local schools, summer camps, and after school programs as well as the implementation of the Farmers Market Coalition’s POP (Power of Produce) Club. POP gives kids the Market experience while also engaging the whole family. We hope that POP will encourage families to return to the Market again and again to participate in hands-on activities, try new foods, and establish the foundation for a lifetime of healthy, locally-based eating habits.  We hope you and your family will enjoy POP!

Since 2011, we have implemented a children’s program in collaboration with local schools, serving approximately 1,800 elementary students.