Try It Thursday

Our Try it Thursday program is a monthly opportunity for students to be exposed to different fruits and vegetables which do not regularly appear on the school lunch menu. We make it a priority to highlight Oregon-grown produce as much as possible. Students are offered a sample as they come through the lunch line. We promote the event throughout the schools using posters and newsletters which include recipes. Students who try the sample are rewarded with stickers and cheers! Bethel Farm provides produce for our Try it Thursday events. Using Oregon Harvest for School materials to promote our taste test, we feature a monthly item not usually on the school menu in the school lunch. Students from Kalapuya High School help grow, promote, and serve these samples.

The Bethel School District is a leader in local food procurement and invites local growers and processors to help serve lunch at taste tests, as well as the Oregon Harvest Meal, to help promote the products being served.in addition to serving Bethel Farm produce at these promotional events (which is grown and harvested by Kalapuya High School students), we work with new local farms in an effort to increase local food in Bethel’s school meals program. The taste test utilizes Oregon Harvest for Schools materials as well as recipes by OSU extension’s Food Hero program. The recipes used are distributed to all bethel families. At local lunch taste-tests throughout the school year, the Bethel Farm manager rotates schools monthly and visits all elementary schools over the course of the school year. Kalapuya students also help to prepare and promote the dish at Bethel elementary schools.