Bill Text: HI HCR229 | 2013 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: "Farm to School Month"; Farm to School Program.

Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2013-03-19 - Referred to AGR, EDN, referral sheet 40 [HCR229 Detail]

Download: Hawaii-2013-HCR229-Introduced.html

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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.C.R. NO.	229
TWENTY-SEVENTH LEGISLATURE, 2013
STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

 

 

DECLARING OCTOBER AS "FARM TO SCHOOL MONTH" IN HAWAII and requesting the department of agriculture, in cooperation with the department of education, to create and implement a farm to school program in hawaii's public schools.

 

 

 

WHEREAS, "Farm to School" refers to a nationwide movement to enrich children’s bodies and minds while supporting local economies and encouraging an interest in agriculture among the next generation; and

 

WHEREAS, under Farm to School programs, an increasing number of schools have begun to source more foods locally and provide complementary educational activities to their students that emphasize food, farming, and nutrition; and

 

WHEREAS, such programs also link health and nutrition to farming education, by bringing local or regionally produced foods into school cafeterias, offering hands-on learning activities such as school gardening, farm visits, and culinary classes, and helping to integrate food-related education into the classroom curriculum; and

 

     WHEREAS, such programs also contribute to student education and career readiness in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics fields; and

 

     WHEREAS, Farm to School programs can also address the concern that this generation of children may be the first to not outlive their parents, due to the prevalence of physical inactivity among our youth and the associated risk of obesity; and

 

     WHEREAS, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends eating more fresh fruits and vegetables as a strategy to prevent and control obesity; and

WHEREAS, childhood obesity is a national epidemic, and in Hawaii, childhood obesity increased by thirty-eight percent between 1999 and 2009; and

 

WHEREAS, the State Department of Education Wellness Guidelines state that meal programs are designed to feature fresh and minimally processed fruits and vegetables from local sources, to the greatest extent possible, and connecting local farms to schools through Farm to School programs is consistent with this goal; now, therefore,

 

     BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-seventh Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2013, the Senate concurring, that October be declared "Farm to School Month" in the State of Hawaii; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Agriculture, in cooperation with the Department of Education, is requested to create and implement a Farm to School Program in Hawaii's public schools; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Agriculture and Department of Education are each requested to submit a report to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2014, containing information on their progress in creating and implementing the Farm to School Program.

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Chairperson of the Board of Agriculture, the Chairperson of the Board of Education, and the Superintendent of Education.

 

 

 

	OFFERED BY:	_____________________________

Report Title: 

"Farm to School Month"; Farm to School Program.