La Semilla Food Center

Programs: Edible education - empowers students to understand how food is grown, consumed, and impacts our personal, community, and environmental health. La semilla supports schools and teachers with the supplies, training and technical assistance to ensure they are successful. We currently offer edible education at 21 partner schools throughout the las cruces, gadsden, and el paso school districts. School garden education - la semilla installs raised garden beds at the schools in the fall so that they are ready for planting in january. Students will engage with every step of the seed to table process from preparing soil to planting seeds to harvesting and eating vegetables, ending in composting food scraps to return nutrients to the soil. Cooking nutrition education - partner schools receive a complete cooking kit that includes cutting boards, knives, mixing bowls, measuring spoons, a salad spinner, graters, peelers, and other tools to prepare basic fresh- prep recipes right in the classroom. After a school completes the 3-year edible education program, the cooking kit remains at the school for future use. Students also prepare farm boxes. In 2017, the edible education program provided 12 professional development workshops to 99 different teachers from 21 schools in three school districts in the region (las cruces public schools, gadsden independent school district, and el paso public schools) and delivered 826 farm boxes over the school year with local produce for in-class cooking lessons

community farm - the farm is used to engage children, youth, and families in growing food and learning about where food comes from. Raices - each year the center engages more than 40 youth in intensive food production and educational programming at la semilla community farm through multiples sessions of this intensive semester-long course. Upon successful completion of the raices program, youth are eligible to apply for the food & farm apprenticeships. Youth selected for the course are provided an educational stipend to compensate them for their time and work. Real food apprenticeship - this program provides intensive education and employment opportunities at the community farm. Apprentices engage in long-term mentorship, education, and skills development. The center hosts 2 to 4 apprentices at any given time, based on interest, staff capacity, and the availability of funding. They are provided a stipend to support their efforts. Summer & spring break camps - allow children to learn about farming. In 2017, the organization grew over 6053 pounds of produce and hosted eleven workshops, averaging 24 participants per workshop, for a total of 273 people.

community education - the organization provides educational classes and mentoring opportunities to the area youth and young adults to raise awareness about the links amoung, food, growing food, health, local economies, equity, fariness and self-determination. The organization also trains community leaders to lead garden and cooking workshops in their communities through la cosecha. There was a total of 101 workshops led by 11 community members with over 1,200 participants.

farm fresh mobile market - connects farmers to local farmers' markets, restaurants, stores, and institutions. Farmers' market - la semilla has partnered with area farmers' markets to help recruit farmers, conduct trainings, promote the use of snap benefits, and provide cooking demonstrations and other educational programming. Partner farmers sell their product through the center's mobile farmers market. Food planning & policy - ensuring that good food is given proper consideration in public comprehensive and strategic planning processes. The center facilitates coalitions like the mesilla valley food policy council that advocate for public policies and planning strategies that promote equitable access to good food for all people