CALIFORNIA  THURSDAYS    A  partnership  between  Oakland  Unified  School  District  and  The  Center  for  Ecoliteracy        

 Cooked-­‐From-­‐Scratch,  All  Local  Lunch  Served  in  Celebration  of  Earth  Day  Features  Mary’s  Chicken,  Raised  without  Antibiotics      Mary’s  Chicken,  Raised  without  Antibiotics,  Served  as  part  of  2014  Earth  Day  All  Local  Lunch  Menu  at  Oakland  Unified  School  District      Oakland,  CA  –  Earth  Day,  2014  (celebrated  April  24)  students  across  Oakland  Unified  School  District  will  be  enjoying  a  very  special  school  lunch  menu  of  fresh,  locally-­‐sourced  food  cooked  from  scratch  featuring  chicken  drums  from  Mary’s  Chicken  in  Sanger,  CA.    Mary’s  is  a  local  chicken  producer,  raising  birds  without  the  use  of  antibiotics.    Italian  Chicken  with  Lemon  and  Oregano  features  chicken  drums  roasted  with  garlic,  lemon,  and  oregano  and  served  with  California  grown  brown  rice  from  Sun  West  in  the  Sacramento  Valley.    Fresh  sugar  snap  peas  from  Tomahawk  Growers  in  Santa  Maria,  CA  and  organic  strawberries  from  ALBA  Growers’  Collective  in  Watsonville,  CA,  will  be  offered  alongside.    This  is  the  first  time  OUSD  has  been  able  to  procure  chicken  raised  in  California  and  echoes  a  larger  commitment  to  expanding  purchases  of  healthful  and  sustainably  produced  grains,  meats,  and  dairy  products  from  within  the  state  of  California.        The  Earth  Day  menu  is  reflective  of  a  larger  district  farm  to  school  commitment,  called  “California  Thursdays,”  a  joint  venture  between  OUSD  Nutrition  Services  and  the  Center  for  Ecoliteracy,  where  one  day  a  week  we  highlight  freshly  prepared  meals  with  ingredients  sourced  entirely  from  California  growers  and  producers.        About  The  California  Thursdays  Program    OUSD  NS  received  a  2012  USDA  Farm  to  School  Implementation  Grant  to  develop  the  program  and  train  front-­‐line  staff.    As  part  of  California  Thursdays,  we  have  held  three  “California  Thursdays  Boot  Camps”  to  build  staff  capacity  and  educate  our  staff  on  new  recipes  and  fresh  California  ingredients.      To  date,  we  have  developed  four  new  student-­‐vetted  recipes  –  Chorizo  and  Greens  over  Penne  Pasta,  Kung  Pao  Chicken  with  Brown  Rice  and  Sweet  Peppers,  Sesame  Soba  Noodles  with  Bok  Choy  and  Tofu,  and  Lemon  Oregano  Roast  Chicken  with  Brown  Rice.    California  Thursdays  has  also  had  a  dramatic  effect  on  OUSD’s  purchasing  –  in  just  one  menu  day,  we  served  over  1200  lbs  of  Tofu  from  Tofu  Yu  in  Berkeley,  CA  and  on  another  menu  day,  we  served  over  1800  lbs  of  organic  kale  from  ALBA  Growers’  Cooperative  in  Watsonville,  CA.    California  Thursdays  is  demonstrative  of  the  power  of  institutional  purchasing  to  support  local  food  economies.    About  Oakland  Unified  School  District  Department  of  Nutrition  Services    OUSD  Department  of  Nutrition  Services  (NS)  serves  almost  7  million  meals  annually  to  the  districts’  37,000  students,  over  70%  of  whom  qualify  for  free  or  reduced  priced  school  meals.    As  a  large  district,  we  have  an  important  opportunity  to  partner  with  local  growers  and  invest  in  our  students’  health  and  the  local  

CALIFORNIA  THURSDAYS    A  partnership  between  Oakland  Unified  School  District  and  The  Center  for  Ecoliteracy        

environment  and  economy.    In  the  past  decade,  OUSD  NS  has  become  a  leader  in  school  nutrition  reforms  and  farm  to  school  efforts,  which  culminated  in  November  2012,  when  Oakland  voters  passed  the  Measure  J  Bond,  $44M  of  which  is  earmarked  for  OUSD  food  systems  infrastructure  improvements  including  the  construction  of  a  new  cook-­‐chill  central  kitchen  scheduled  to  open  in  West  Oakland  in  2016.    Visit  www.ousd.k12.ca.us.      About  the  Center  for  Ecoliteracy    The  Center  for  Ecoliteracy  is  a  nonprofit  that  advances  ecological  education  in  K-­‐12  schools  and  works  at  multiple  levels  of  scale,  including  local,  regional,  statewide,  and  national.  Founded  in  1995,  the  Center  creates  and  publishes  books,  guides,  and  educational  resources;  facilitates  conferences,  professional  development,  and  programmatic  initiatives;  and  provides  strategic  consulting.  A  leader  in  K–12  school  food  reform  and  school  gardens,  the  Center  developed  the  Rethinking  School  Lunch  framework  used  by  school  districts  across  the  nation.  Recommendations  in  its  Rethinking  School  Lunch  Oakland  Feasibility  Study  were  adopted  as  part  of  the  Oakland  Unified  School  District’s  Facilities  Master  Plan  2012,  and  are  being  implemented  in  the  creation  of  a  new  Central  Kitchen,  Urban  Farm,  and  Education  Center.  Visit  www.ecoliteracy.org.    Contact    Alexandra  Emmott  Farm  to  School  Supervisor,  Oakland  Unified  School  District    alexandra.emmott@ousd.k12.ca.us  510-­‐434-­‐3334    Adam  Kesselman  Rethinking  School  Lunch  Manager,  Center  for  Ecoliteracy  adam@ecoliteracy.org  510-­‐845-­‐4595