The Lovett School buys local

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The Lovett School buys local

The Lovett School, a private school in Atlanta, is making an effort to buy locally grown produce for its school cafeteria. Soup with Vidalia onions, dishes with Georgia eggs and local produce are features of the cafeteria menu. See photos from the Lovett kitchen and cafeteria.

Julia O'Gorman, a hungry first grader, deciding what to have for lunch in the Lovett dining hall. The Lovett School has started buying most of its fruit and vegetables locally.

Lovett's food services director, Meredith Statler, uses a map to show where some of its food comes from. The Atlanta private school is trying to reduce its reliance on frozen fruits and vegetables as well as produce from far-away places.

Angeles Marzana places Georgia eggs into a Lovett dining hall oven, where they will be used to make egg salad. The buy-local trend in school cafeterias began in California and has spread nationally. Several metro Atlanta schools are looking at adopting the practice, but the Lovett School's efforts are far ahead of most.

Aaron Jessie unpacks lettuce for salad bars at the Lovett dining hall. According to Meredith Statler, the reduced travel time for locally grown produce can mean fresher, more nutritious food. Cutting back on fuel and transportation can have environmental benefits as well.

Produce waits its turn at the Lovett dining hall kitchen. Observers say that as more public school lunch programs switch to locally grown produce, administrators may find that there aren't enough local and regional farms to support the demand.

Darrell Pledger makes onion soup with Vidalia onions in the Lovett dining hall kitchen. The school gets deliveries of local produce about twice a week. Some items, such as bananas, can't be purchased locally, and other local items, such as Florida oranges, can't be purchased during certain times of the year.

Fourteen-year-old Drew Brown enjoys soup during lunch in the Lovett dining hall. Many of the Lovett students say that the locally grown produce tastes better. Meredith Statler says, "The students are our first customer and we want them to be happy. But I want the students to be thinking about where their food comes from."

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Julia O'Gorman, a hungry first grader, deciding what to have for lunch in the Lovett dining hall. The Lovett School has started buying most of its fruit and vegetables locally.

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