Former New Castle juvenile detention center transformed into urban farm
They have a traditional outdoor garden and an indoor food laboratory where they grow lettuce for meals for children in their early childhood education program
By Desirae Gostlin
WKBN
May 26, 2021
Excerpt:
This room can produce enough lettuce to feed 425 students. It can take several hours to harvest this room when it’s fully grown, somewhere around 40 to 50 pounds of greens.
“A lot of our kids think that food comes from the dollar general or the super market. They don’t understand how the process of food works,” said Kristen Green, a representative from Lawrence County Social Services. “So to teach them agriculture — to teach them things they can do at home to make healthy decisions with their eating. That will influence so much of their lives.”
Good nutrition is essential in children who are pre-school aged. Healthy eating is linked to increased brain function and development.
The produce doesn’t just go to feed children. It is also donated to the community through meal boxes to help the elderly and poor.
