Locavore Brunch

On Thursday our class met at the dairy lane pavilion and ate local dishes that our groups made. There was a lot of good food there, and i tried things i've never had before like vegan cookies. It was nice to support the local community and talk about where our ingredients came from. We also talked about some of our past field trips as a class to wrap up our last day of class.This brunch was a nice end to the quarter, and i really enjoyed all of the speakers and field trips throughout the quarter.

Holter's Holstein Farm

On Tuesday our class toured the Holter's Holstein dairy farm. The tour was led by the farmer's daughter, who is the third generation of dairy farmers. We started out in the main office and learned about the technology involved in keeping track of their many cows. We toured the calves area first and actually saw a one week old calf. We then toured the old barn property, and finally the milking room. There is a lot of food safety procedures used to ensure safe milk handling. The milking room follows HACCP guidelines.The milk holding tank is constantly monitored for temperature and sanitation. The milk is tested for bacteria and the nutritional breakdown of the milk is also analyzed. The farmers are paid for their sold milk. They actually get a bonus if their milk is higher in fat. As a dietetics professional i think it would be interesting to learn more about animal nutrition and the milking process. If an RD is interested in working in the dairy business they could help with the process and also work in milk advertising or promotion with the National Dairy Council.

National Dairy Council

On Thursday Karen Bakies, the nutrition affairs director for the American Dairy Association Mideast, came to talk with our class. She is a registered dietitian and gives many nutrition education talks to various groups. The National Dairy Council provides timely, scientific-based nutrition information to the media, physicians, dietitians, nurses, educators, consumers and others concerned about fostering a healthy lifestyle. They also administer grants to independent researchers to aid in discovery of new information about dairy foods and their important role in a healthy lifestyle. They are funded by dairy farmers, who give $0.15 for each 100lb of milk produced. There are 31,000 dairy farmers in Ohio with 83 average cows per farm. Karen talked to us about the dairy business, but also talked a lot about good communication. She gave our class many tips on understanding and engaging your audience when giving a speech. She was a very good speaker because of her knowledge of communication. The role of a nutrition professional is important in the dairy industry because it is important to educate individuals about the nutrition of dairy products and the new research that is being discovered.

Needs Assessment

On Tuesday my group met and we worked on our needs analysis for adults in Athens county with hypertension using the DASH diet. For the past 8 weeks we have been passing around our needs assessment workbook, and splitting up the work. We have already made a handout pertaining to DASH as well as a vegetable handout, so we started working on the final write up. We worked well together by taking turns typing and looking up research information or information from our workbook. Everyone helped work on the needs assessment which was really nice and productive.

Good Earth Farm

On Thursday our class went to Good Earth farm and met Jeff and his daughter Ruth. Good Earth farm is a non-profit organization and their goals are to provide healthy food to those who most need it and to provide a place for education and retreat for others. The farm is largely up-kept by volunteer support. Many groups of all ages come to volunteer and learn about agriculture and animals at the farm. The farm is funded by a variety of sources including Jeff and his wife, grants, and donations. For example, there is a donation station at the Athens farmers market.

At first we saw the chickens, and talked about using their eggs. We then saw the cows and sheep. The cows are grass fed and raw milk is often consumed by visitors, but not sold. The sheep help keep the pasture healthy, and their wool is used. Then we saw the garden which was really large and nicely organized. The farm uses compost and cover crops to increase the nutrition of the soil. The food is given to food pantries and individuals who come to the farm to eat. The food that is leftover is canned and distributed as well. There isn't a specific need for a nutrition professional, but i think it is important for a nutrition professional to know where their food is coming from and to help educate others. Jeff is very knowledgeable about gardening and farming practices, and i definitely learned a lot from our visit.

WIC

Today Melissa Alfano, an RD from the Athens and Perry County WIC offices, came to talk with our class. She actually got her undergraduate and masters degree from OU. She told us about WIC and her personal experiences as a dietitian. WIC stands for Women, Infants, and Children and it is a federal program under the USDA. WIC provides Federal grants to States for supplemental foods, health care referrals, and nutrition education for low-income pregnant, breastfeeding, and non-breastfeeding postpartum women, and to infants and children up to age five who are found to be at nutritional risk. It is funded completely by the federal government, but changes can be made a the state level. In order to be eligible, participants have to be 185% of the US poverty line or have a medicaid card. To be a part of an Ohio WIC program, you must be a resident of Ohio. All of the 88 counties in Ohio have an affiliation with WIC. WIC's mission is to safeguard the health of low-income women, infants, and children up to age 5 who are at nutrition risk by providing nutritious foods to supplement diets, information on healthy eating, and referrals to health care.


WIC provides nutrition education to clients as well, and there is a need to nutrition professionals. RDs specifically evaluate high risk clients and provide the appropriate care and nutrition education. Every two years the Athens and Perry county WIC are evaluated at the state level. Research is also done at the federal level to determine the federal budget for the WIC program. 


At my field experience I actually spent some time working at the WIC in Zanesville, Ohio. It was a great experience to work with the community, and be part of a different type of nutrition care than I was used to in the hospital.

Compost Facility and Ecohouse

On Thursday our class went to the compost facility and Ecohouse where we met Annie, who took us through the sites. She works for the Ohio University Office of Sustainability. OU uses an in-vessel composter system that is funded mostly by a $350,000 grant from the Division of Recycling and Litter Prevention within the Ohio Department of Natural Resources. They also received $35,105 from the Department of Developments' Energy Loan Fund for the solar array. The remaining funding is from the OU departments Facilities Management and Auxillaries. Food waste from central foods and shively dining hall is taken to the compost facility in large trash cans without plastic bags. The bins are washed out after each use. The compost facility is currently under construction to expand the area. The compost is used for intramural athletic fields, gardens for plant biology students, and the ecohouse community garden currently.

Annie then took us to the ecohouse where she showed us the outside of the house. There are community gardens, a compost area, water collection jugs, solar panels for electricity, clothes drying lines, and panels for generating heat. These are just some of the sustainable living features. Three students pass an application process every year to live in the house. It is a great opportunity to create a sustainable project or live in a sustainable environment.