Harvest of the Month

What is the Harvest of the Month? 

Harvest of the Month (HOTM) is a nutrition education program that celebrates the bounty and diversity of fruits and vegetables grown in California. In OUSD, we use the HOTM program to provide education on fruits and vegetables, our food system, and California agriculture.

Nutrition Services plays a crucial role in the HOTM program by serving the HOTM every day on school produce bars. We also work closely with the Environment, Food, and Garden team at the Center to source HOTM produce from Organic, BIPOC-Owned, Woman-Owned, Local, or Small-Scale farms in California.

May's Harvest of the Month: Strawberries!

This month, our Harvest of the Month is Strawberries! Strawberries are rich in antioxidants and vitamins, such as vitamin C, manganese, folate, and potassium. Strawberries have many different health benefits such as powering our immune system, reducing risk of chronic diseases, improving heart health, lowering blood sugar levels, and helping prevent cancer (just to name a few of many benefits!) 

Strawberries also have a rich history, spanning back to as early as 1000 AD, as described in literature. The first drawing of the strawberry was seen in 1484. Historically, strawberries were cherished for its medicinal benefits as an entire plant, but we now enjoy it for its juicy fruit. Strawberries are a popular crop in the United States, with 88% of all US Grown strawberries coming out of California, which comes out to 1.8 billion pounds. 

Strawberries are in the Rosacae (rose) family, more specifically in the Fragaria genus (aka the flowering plants in the rose family). There are over more than 20 species in the fragaria genus. Strawberries are such a wonderful fruit to snack on during the warm months. They are tasty as a snack, in a smoothie, or in a salad. Try some Strawberries on the Produce Bar this May! 

To learn some more strawberry facts and access classroom Harvest of the Month programming, visit the Center's Education and Community Program's web page.