Winners will receive cash awards as follows: Grand Prize winner will receive $750; First Runner-up will receive $500; three honorable mention winners will each receive $250. Deadline for entries is March 12, and winners will be announced in early May. Contest information has been sent to high schools around the state.
This year's theme was chosen because of the increasing public interest in "farm-to-school" programs around the nation. Such programs, where schools buy fresh produce from small farmers in their local area, have been instituted in 17 states, Poole said.
In Oklahoma, a recent survey of school food service managers conducted by the Oklahoma Food Police council found considerable interest in buying locally-grown produce. The council has also produced a directory of farmers interested in selling to schools. The interest of farmers, and the wide diversity of the crops they grow or could grow, demonstrates the potential for this kind of program, Jim Horne, council co-chair, said.
The issue is made more urgent because the percentage of Oklahoma's youth who are overweight has more than doubled since the early 1970s, due in part to unhealthy diets, according to the Oklahoma State Department of Health report. "Farm-to-school programs are a win-win for both schools and farmers. Schools provide children fresh, tasty, nutritious produce while farmers acquire new markets," Horne said.
The council is working to get such programs established in Oklahoma. The essay contest is designed to include young people in a thoughtful discussion of contemporary issues. The winning essays will focus on the challenges and potential benefits of establishing farm-to-school programs in Oklahoma schools.
Information on the essay contest, farm-to-school programs, and the food policy council is available online at kerrcenter.com or by calling the Kerr Center at 918-647-9123, Poole said.
