Oskaloosa Elementary Taste Testing Kickoff!
Oskaloosa Elementary School held their first-ever produce taste testing event! Program director Julie Miller secured funding for taste-testing through a Team Nutrition grant as well as a grant from the Chef Ann Foundation.
On January 28, 2016, Oskaloosa Elementary School held their first-ever produce taste testing event! Program director Julie Miller secured funding for taste-testing through a Team Nutrition grant as well as a grant from the Chef Ann Foundation.
Students taste tested jicama & cherry tomatoes. Once tasted, then the students voted on whether the produce was a ‘yum’ or an ‘ick’ for their taste buds! The winner was jicama, by quite a wide margin, much to the adults’ surprise!
This project was carried out by support from the OES TAG students & the OES 5th Grade Peer Helpers, who passed out the samples to students, garnered feedback from students, managed the voting stations, & passed out ‘I Tried It!’ stickers to students who participated in the taste testing event.
The event was a success, & a great deal of fun for all involved! It was wonderful to see the older students interacting with the younger ones, & to hear the feedback from the students who participated.
OES plans to carry out a taste test on the last Thursday of each month through the end of April. Students will have the opportunity to taste two fresh produce items during each testing event. Items that are deemed the winners will then be added to the lunch menu rotation at OES.
