Conscious Kitchen

The Conscious Kitchen in the Sausalito-Marin City School District is a place based model and demonstration site that we are replicating to serve new districts and communities. The web of partnerships and relationships developed in Sausalito and Marin City exist in all communities. We create collective impact. The Conscious Kitchen builds cross-sect... or collaborations and creates shared measurement systems to address global and societal challenges community by community through food, with the well-being of children at the core. The impact is vast. Civil Eats calls the farm to institution sourcing model the "sleeping giant" of local food. According to the USDA, nearly 100,000 schools/institutions serve school lunches to 30.5 million students each day. With multimillion dollar food procurement budgets, shifts in school food buying have the potential for major impacts on local economies, agricultural systems, food access, public health and better life outcomes for the next generation. Examples of sectors we impact: TCK supports ecological agriculture and small-scale farming and ranching operations by creating dependable local demand and farm-to-table networks for farmers and ranchers. School behavior and focus issues are often associated with nutritional deficits or food insecurity. Teachers and administration have reported a reduction in behavioral issues, increased attention spans and an increase in students taking leadership roles since the arrival of TCK into their schools. Public health: Eating highly processed foods, consuming sugary drinks and a diet deficient in elements necessary for proper development are contributing to an epidemic of obesity and associated health problems among children in the US. With the support of University of California San Francisco's Family Health Outcomes Project (FHOP), County Health and Human Services and other community members, TCK is working closely with its partner schools to analyze data to assess the impact that the transition to healthy, fresh food served in schools has ...Read More