FALL RIVER: A Buy Local Expo gave Georges P. Vanier Junior High students like Ashley Demings, Aliya Irving and their peers an “eye-opening” experience on the food products and farm markets in Nova Scotia.
Demings and Irving were among the five students who helped cook and then serve food to fellow students during the food expo. There was also a room where research on various farm markets and food products that are available across the province were highlighted with information.
“I think it’s just a great eye-opening thing for us students to see what kind of cool things and cool foods can be made in Nova Scotia,” said Demings.
At the expo, students all got to try different food and gave others a chance to cook as well.
“We also had to work together as a team to do this, the cooking,” added Irving.
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Demings said the food expo was not only great for the students educationally but also farmers as they supported them to purchase the food needed.
“It just gives us students a little bit more of an idea of what kind of foods we can make locally,” the Fall River area Grade 8 student said.
The food expo allowed other students to be able to express themselves in ways they couldn’t normally do so.
“I thought it was great because it gave me a chance to express my creativity and make posters,” said Irving, who lives in Enfield, HRM.
“I just thought it was something different because we don’t usually do this at our school. I think it’s cool.”
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This was the first year for the Buy Local Food Expo at GPV and food nutrition teacher Andrea Gillespie is hopeful it will become an annual event.
She explained there is an outcome in the curriculum, the food and nutrition curriculum, which covers local and global food issues.
“The concept and importance of buying local goods is tied into that outcome,” she said. “We received some funding, and the concept was using that money to put back into the economy by purchasing meats from Withrow’s and vegetables from The Vegetorium.”
The students served up beef stew; chicken soup; apple cheddar quesadillas; and blueberry muffins.
Gillespie said the students also had to work on a project focused on either a Nova Scotia food product or a local business that could have been a restaurant that specializes in Nova Scotia Foods or a market.
“It’s definitely a learning experience for them all,” she said.
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Asked how she was doing, Irving was all smiles.
“I’m having a fun time. Ashley’s having a fun time,” she said. “We’re all learning about food, using our skills, and working as a team.
Irving and Demings both agreed the blueberry muffins were the most popular of the food items available.
Journalism intern Paige Dillman asked Gillespie how the selection process went to determine which students would lead the expo and do the cooking.
“They were finishing up their projects, and they’re helpful and problem solving as students,” Gillespie said. “I said those are the ones that I need to be in the space that I can delegate a job to, and they just picked it up and rolled with it.
“I didn’t have to oversee them a whole lot.”
