Where Your Food Comes From - a NEW Web Based Teaching Resource

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 5, 2008

Teachers in grades third through five can enhance their students' understanding of where the food on their plates comes from through a new University of Illinois Extension website. "Fresh From the World . . . Where Your Food Comes From" (http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/food/) was developed by Greg Stack and Russ Higgins, U of I Extension educators in horticulture and integrated pest management, respectively, and Jane Scherer, Extension specialist urban programs/web coordination.

"The site looks at 15 different popular foods and explores their histories and origins," Stack said. "The students can gain a new understanding about the food they find in the grocery store and the fact that it sometimes comes from all over the world."

Scherer added that a global farm already exists.

"Popular foods like bananas and strawberries are available year-round because they are grown in many parts of the world and shipped directly to the worldwide markets," she said. "By knowing where in the world our food comes from, a simple phone call brings food to your local grocer's door."

Food festivals and the food distribution process are also covered on the website.

The interactive site also includes a teacher's guide.