By Felicia Spencer
When Associate Professor Susan Whitehead asked for help harvesting apples from her research orchard, she tapped into an established sustainability chain of events that provides food security for students and families throughout the New River Valley region.
“We work with Dining Services to distribute some of our apples through their community partners and campus programs that aim to reduce food insecurity,” said Whitehead, a plant chemical ecologist in the Department of Biological Sciences.
Produce grown at Kentland Farm is usually cultivated on the student-driven Homefield Farm site within Kentland for campus dining facilities. This 12-acre organic farm is the result of a partnership between Dining Services, the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, and the School of Plant and Environmental Sciences, and it is the only university-owned certified organic farm in Virginia.
The School of Plant and Environmental Sciences maintains more acreage for research, such as Whitehead’s orchard. When there are crops that would otherwise go to waste, the school contacts Emily Williams '14, '22, sustainability manager for Dining Services. Dining Services gets the produce, and the researchers get help harvesting the crops, which promotes healthier plants. A win-win.
“I think food access is extremely important, and the idea of food waste is appalling. We have outlets where it can go,” said Williams. “The goal is to have a community partner in each location in the New River Valley. So with the help of Campus Kitchen, we’re touching Floyd, Christiansburg, Blacksburg, Radford, and Fairlawn.”
Through a collaborative network of students, employees, and volunteers, many of Whitehead’s apples traveled the same route as most organic vegetables and fruit grown at Kentland Farm.
With one exception.
Some of these apples were featured at Virginia Tech Sustainable Dining’s recent fall festival, where Whitehead sponsored an apple and cider tasting. An affiliated faculty with the Translational Plant Sciences Center, Whitehead supplied the multiple varieties she grows for research, including some historical ones such as the Virginia Hewe's Crab and Harrison, which are varieties particularly well suited for apple cider.
In 2018, Whitehead received a U.S. Department of Agriculture grant to plant the orchard in Kentland Farm. Each year, Whitehead and the students in her lab track the health of the orchard by collecting data on the fruit yield and the amount of damage caused by disease or pests.
“We study all the different chemical compounds that plants produce and try to understand how they’re important in ecological interactions, such as how well defended the plant is against insect pests,” said Whitehead, an affiliate faculty of the Fralin Life Sciences Institute’s Global Change Center.
Maximizing usage of any edible crops is Williams’ goal, and at the same time she seeks to fulfill the university’s motto, Ut Prosim (That I May Serve), through the Campus Kitchen program. A partnership between Dining Services and VT Engage since 2015, Campus Kitchen works to increase food access and to reduce food waste by redirecting unserved food from on-campus dining centers to hunger relief agencies in the New River Valley.
“My goal is for us to use as many campus-grown products as we possibly can, and I believe Dining Services has a responsibility and a drive to utilize what campus is growing to the best of our abilities,” Williams said. “I think that we’re the best outlet for it, so partnerships and collaborations are very important to me.”
Tapping into those partnerships, Williams diverted 2,110 pounds from Whitehead's apples and made available 477 pounds to the Campus Kitchen program. That is where Isabelle Largen '22, assistant director for food access initiatives, became involved.
Through Campus Kitchen, Largen oversees the vast network of volunteers throughout the New River Valley who help to supply many regional food banks including the Interfaith Food Pantry, the Agape Center, Radford Fairlawn Daily Bread, and the YMCA at Virginia Tech.
Largen also oversees The Market of Virginia Tech, which provides food assistance to Virginia Tech students who, for whatever reason, have a hard time obtaining regular, healthy meals.
Students who sign up for the enrolled grocery store model can shop for a variety of produce, dairy, dairy substitutes, protein, and nonperishable items each week. For those who are not signed up, or who are on the waiting list, Open Market can provide more immediate assistance.
“The primary program that we recommend students utilize is our Open Market, and that is available on a walk-in basis for any student,” said Largen. “Although that program only guarantees nonperishables, we have been really excited to be able to offer some of these local produce options that have been donated, such as the Whitehead lab apples.”
Including the fresh produce from Homefield Farm and research crops in the Open Market offerings began this summer. Reluctant to waste anything, Williams contacts Largen when the farm has an abundance of produce that could spoil before all of it is utilized by Dining Services. Usually it is Largen herself who goes out to the fields.
“One of our main values in the market is sustainability,” Largen said. “Even when we have produce that goes bad, it’s not going to waste because we distribute it to a pig farmer. We always have a second use.”
Williams also has a Plan B. Dining Services diverts spoiled food to a local facility to be composted to care for the campus grounds.
This sustainability chain of events benefits research, student learning, and food security throughout the campus and community.
If you are a Virginia Tech undergraduate or graduate student interested in food assistance through The Market of Virginia Tech or other options, the first step is to contact the Dean of Students Office.
Source : vt.edu