Students across Michigan celebrated Apple Crunch Day on Oct. 24 by biting into crisp, locally grown apples and sharing their pictures as part of National Farm to School Month.
St. Vincent Home students took part in this event, crunching into donated Empire apples from Empire, Mich., while also learning about local, seasonal crops and hands-on agricultural education.
This was the sixth year of Apple Crunch Day in Michigan and other states are catching on to the movement with their own crunch days, including Pennsylvania and Illinois.
As a class activity at St. Vincent, students dissected their apples before making apple sandwiches with a mixed nut butter and dark chocolate chips. A huge thank you to Ms. Thomas, Ms. Price, and Jeff Lowe from HCS, as well as Cherry Capital Foods from Traverse City for making this event possible.
The event is supported by a collaborative of Michigan’s core partners in the National Farm to School Network, which helps Farm-to-School initiatives around the country by sharing resources and best practices.
Farm to School is a growing national trend that encourages schools to use their food purchasing dollars to buy from local farms, while enhancing their curriculum with nutrition education and gardening activities. Students develop a deeper relationship with food, and these purchases bolster local economies and help family farms thrive.
