Sacramento school promotes nutrition among low-income families with farmers market

• Farmers market sends Sacramento students home with produce, health tips
• Students at Main Avenue Elementary can ‘shop’ for free produce during recess
• The simulation market gives each child 5 to 10 pounds of produce from the local food bank

"With the aid of a dozen helpers such as Davis, Main Avenue Elementary gives out roughly 3,000 pounds of fresh produce to the school’s 330 students each month as part of a simulation farmers market launched in March. Held at recess, the market provides hearty amounts of much-needed healthy food, as well as important nutritional information, to a low-income North Sacramento neighborhood where many would otherwise go without.

“What this is, is just a food distribution disguised as a nutrition education activity,” said Erica Lee, program administrator with the nonprofit Health Education Council, which helps run the program. “Coming out here and getting these fresh fruits and vegetables in the hands of these kids, to go home and get excited and share that excitement with their families, is really what this is all about.”

“Anything to make them feel proactive, make them feel good about their situation, is a great thing,”

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