Rockdale County Public Schools announced its district-wide holiday meal, featuring a sweet potato soufflé made with locally sourced sweet potatoes. This farm-to-school initiative highlights the district’s dedication to providing fresh, nutritious meals while supporting local agriculture.
Two thousand pounds of local sweet potatoes will be used to prepare the dish, which 15,342 students across 20 RCPS schools will enjoy. The sweet potatoes will be roasted whole to enhance their natural sweetness, then blended with other ingredients to create the soufflé, showcasing the district’s commitment to scratch cooking.
This initiative is made possible in part through support from the Georgia ACRE Collective’s Local Food Incentive Pilot, a program facilitated by The Common Market Southeast and other Georgia-based organizations that aim to support an equitable regional food system. This pilot program has been instrumental in helping RCPS integrate more locally sourced ingredients into its menus and engage students with fresh, high-quality food.
The sweet potatoes featured in the holiday meal are sourced from La Hacienda Sweets, a Latino-owned, 180-acre vegetable farm based in Lyons. By sourcing locally, RCPS not only provides students with fresher ingredients but also supports Georgia’s agricultural economy.
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
The recipe for the sweet potato soufflé was first introduced during a training session at RCPS’s pilot schools, C.J. Hicks Elementary and J.H. House Elementary. After receiving positive feedback from school nutrition staff, Blaine Allen, RCPS School Nutrition director, decided to menu the dish district-wide for this special occasion.
“We’re so proud to work with the Georgia ACRE Collective to bring local foods to our students,” said Allen. “This program not only enhances the quality of our meals but also strengthens ties between our schools and the local farming community.”
This year’s holiday meal will also feature “celebrity servers,” including principals, teachers, community members, and local officials, who will bring holiday cheer as they serve the meal to students.
This holiday meal marks the second time this school year that RCPS has served a locally-sourced item district-wide. In October, the district celebrated National School Lunch Week with grass-fed beef burgers from Hunter Cattle of Brooklet.
The district’s commitment to local food is further highlighted by its recent expansion of the Georgia ACRE-supported pilot program to a third school, Peek’s Chapel Elementary, reflecting RCPS’s growing focus on farm-to-school initiatives.
The pilot program also serves Marietta City Schools, and launched with its third district, Atlanta Public Schools, this fall. During the pilot’s first year, 2023-2024, Marietta and RCPS reinvested $40,300 into the Georgia economy, primarily through food purchased from local farms, launched 12 new recipes, and supported 24 Georgia farms and producers.
RCPS’s holiday meal will also feature oven-fried chicken, green beans, macaroni and cheese, and more.
Credit: The Citizens
Credit: The Citizens
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