Project

Title: Growing a Love for Veggies

Funds Requested: $50,000
Proposal Start Date: June 10, 2015
Proposal End Date: August 10, 2015

Project Director:
Alyssa Borba, RD
369 Lemon St.
San Luis Obispo, CA
Phone: 831-XXX-XXXX
Email: acborba@calpoly.edu
This award should be made to: Monroe Elementary School, Fresno County

Funding Organization: Coalition for Healthy Communities

ABSTRACT:
Growing a Love for Veggies will create and use a multifaceted garden-based program to
increase exposure, knowledge, and attitudes toward vegetables among elementary
school children in Fresno County. Increasing vegetable consumption is an essential step
in preventing and treating obesity among adolescents, as well as instituting healthy
eating habits that will last into adulthood. Half of the Monroe Elementary School
student body will act as the control group, and the other half will participate in field
trips to local farms, taste testing, and school garden activities. Interviewers will
administer questionnaires and collect data before and after the intervention to evaluate
its effect on vegetable consumption and preference. The intervention will take place
over a one-year period, starting at the beginning of the school year and lasting through
the last day of classes. Goals of Growing a Love for Veggies are to increase willingness to
try, attitudes and preferences for, and intake of vegetables in participants.

NEEDS ASSESSMENT:
Inadequate vegetable intake has been a consistent and detrimental issue among
most Americans, contributing to high rates of overweight and obesity. Only 26.3% of
Americans consume the recommended 3 or more servings of vegetables a day.1 Despite
the widely acknowledged health benefits of eating the recommended amount of
vegetables, consumption has remained stagnantly low from 26.7% in 2000 to 26.3% in
2009.2 Low vegetable consumption is particularly worrisome considering obesity is the
leading preventable cause of illness in the U.S. and the most common nutritional
condition among children and adolescents. Among American children and adolescents,
about 21-24% are overweight, and another 16-18% are considered obese.3 Childhood
obesity is of great concern because it is estimated that about half of children who are
overweight will continue to be overweight in adulthood and that 70% of those who are
overweight by adolescence will remain overweight as adults.4 The National Health and
Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) indicates that the prevalence of obesity is
increasing in all pediatric age groups, in both sexes, and in various ethnic and racial
groups.5
Inadequate vegetable intake is a major risk factor for pediatric obesity.6 Eating
healthy foods, like fruits and vegetables, can help maintain weight and prevent weight
gain, as well as reduce the risk of chronic diseases. For this reason, the Healthy People
2020 objective NWS-15.1 aims to increase the contribution of total vegetables to the
diets of children. At Baseline, the mean intake among this age group in 2001-04, was
about 0.8 cup equivalents of total vegetables per 1,000 calories. The target is to
increase this mean intake to about 1.1 cup equivalents of vegetables per 1,000 calories.7
Increasing the amount of vegetables consumed in this aged group would
promote healthy weight management and prevent obesity due to the generally high
water and nutrient and low fat content of fruits and vegetables, making them a
nutritious, low calorie contribution to a healthy diet. Because of their nutritional profile,
increased consumption of fruits and vegetables can improve dietary quality as a strategy
to maintain a healthy weight.21-23 Evidence states that interventions to prevent obesity

in a childs earliest years promotes a lifetime of health.19 In order to have the biggest
and longest lasting impact in the prevention and treatment of obesity, the intervention
to improve vegetable consumption in Fresno County should be focused on elementary
school-aged children. Instilling positive attitudes and behaviors toward vegetables
within the younger population will help prevent obesity by developing healthier, life-
long food habits.
Like adults, there are disparities in obesity prevalence among different ethnic
and racial groups in children and adolescents.11-13 According to the U.S. Center for
Disease Control and Prevention (2011), when compared to non-Hispanic whites,
Hispanics have higher rates of Type 2 diabetes, cancer, cardiovascular disease, and
obesity.11 The number of children, aged 10-17, who are overweight or obese in
California increased and reveals wide racial and ethnic disparities. Whereas the rate of
obesity for white children decreased by 8%, the rate for Hispanic and African American
children increased by 4% and 8%. In 2007, 40% of Hispanic children, 34% of African
American children and 18% of white children in California were overweight or obese.14
Previous studies support the positive impact of using school gardens as a tool to
increase the consumption and perceptions of vegetables in adolescents. A study
involving Latino youths in the Los Angeles school district showed that garden-based
education, in combination with cook and nutrition components, has a positive impact on
several psychological aspects including attitudes, perceptions, and preferences for
vegetables6. A review article examining the impact of garden-based interventions found
similar results regarding the positive impact of school gardens. Researchers compiled 11
studies involving children 5-15 years old, and spanning from 1990 to 2007. Results
showed that, while more research is needed, garden-based nutrition interventions are
correlated with improved fruit and vegetable intake, willingness to taste fruits and
vegetables, and increased preferences among youth whose current preferences for
fruits and vegetables are low25.
In school gardening programs, students participate in growing and harvesting a
variety of fruits and vegetables, many of which they are unfamiliar with. Gardening

activities allow for hands-on involvement in nutrition education, while encouraging

students to try and become more familiar with various fruits and vegetables. Because
most US children aged 6 to 18 years old attend school daily, school-based garden
education is an important way to reach, influence, and promote fruit and vegetable
intake in this age group. School gardens provide an interactive learning experience for
children and allow them to develop a connection and lasting relationship with the food
they eat and the dietary habits they maintain throughout their life.26
The strong evidence supporting the positive impact garden-based education has
on children in increasing their attitudes toward and consumption of vegetables,
suggests that this would be a good intervention to implement on the children of Fresno
County. Because Fresno County has such a large Hispanic population, which is largely
impacted by obesity, intervening at a young age is vital in order to prevent the
progression and severity of obesity and its negative health consequences. Garden-based
education is a solution that will educate children about the health benefits of
vegetables, while encouraging them to be outside and involved in the actual farming
process. This will help increase vegetable consumption among school-aged children in
order to meet the Healthy People 2020 goal of 1.1 cup equivalents of vegetables
consumed per day.
This intervention proposes to address the needs of elementary school students
in Fresno County. As many as 42.7% of students in Fresno County are overweight or
obese, comparatively higher than the general rate of 38% among students in California.
Children in Fresno, aged 2 to 11, have an obesity rate of 52.7%, and children 12 to 17
have a rate of 23.3%.15 Because childhood obesity has become so prevalent, especially
among the Hispanic population, Fresno County would greatly benefit from intervention
to increase vegetable consumption among this age group to prevent and manage its
obesity rates.

GOALS/OBJECTIVES:

The goal of this project is to increase the consumption of vegetables in children in

Fresno County in order to prevent the prevalence and severity of obesity through the
Growing a Love for Veggies program. The objectives of this program are to:
-

Increase intake of vegetables in Monroe Elementary School children by at least

.3 cups per 1,000 calories by the end of the year, by exposing them to school
vegetable gardens, local farms, and taste testings. This will be measured
through pre- and post-intervention FFQs.

Increase positive attitudes towards vegetables, including preference for

vegetables and willingness to try vegetables by the end of the school year,
measured by improved scores of the formulated attitude questionnaire.

To increase the number of students with a BMI within normal range by at least
10% through increased vegetable intake and improved attitudes toward
vegetables

To evaluate the effectiveness of the various components of the school garden

program, including hands-on activities, classroom lecture, and field trips on the
improvement of attitudes toward vegetables and overall vegetable intake after 1
year

PROJECT DESCRIPTION:
My intervention, Growing a Love for Veggies, will take place in Monroe
Elementary School, a KG-8 school located in a rural area of Fresno County. The student
body consists 191 students, 83.2% of which are Hispanic27.
A News Letter describing the program and its goals will be sent to the students
parents to determine interest in permission for involvement in the study. Those
interested will be selected at random to participate and the other half of the student
body will act as the control group. The control group will not participate in the extra
garden-based education activities, instead receiving the usual classroom nutrition
education. The intervention will run throughout the entirety of one school year.

The first phase of the intervention will be performed throughout the three
months of summer and the first week of classes. It will include developing plans for the
school garden and garden activities, recruiting parent, teacher, local high school, and
community volunteers and partners, and purchasing and collecting materials for the
construction and maintenance of the school garden. During the first week of classes, a
attitudes questionnaire and FFQ will be administered to collect data and assess the
status of student attitudes toward vegetables and vegetable consumption before the
intervention.
The second week of school will start the next phase, when the school garden
intervention actually begins. A Construction Day will be held, where all volunteers,
teachers, students, and the Master Gardner work together to construct the school
garden. Over the next 3-4 months of the first semester, the intervention group will
participate in monthly field trips to farms throughout the county, where they will learn
from farmers and participate in hands-on activities like planting, picking, taste testing of
vegetables, etc. Field trips will be coordinated through the Project Director, local
farmers, and Southwest transportation. Charter buses, seating 60 people, will be rented
for 5 hours on field trip days and will transfer students back and forth in two separate
shifts. While on group is on the field trip, the other will participate in garden activities
and then they will switch. Participants will also take a trip to a nursery to pick out plants
and seeds to plant in their school garden- plants/seeds at several different stages of
growth. In December, at the end of the first semester of classes, students will plant
their personally selected plants/seeds from the nursery. They will cover the plants for
protection of cold weather over break, and high school volunteers will be responsible
for maintenance until classes start again.
When they come back from break in January, they will be able to see the
progress that the plants have made and continue to see their growth and development
throughout the second semester. Over the next 4 months of the semester, they will be
responsible for the maintenance of their plants (watering, maintaining, picking, pruning,
etc.). Students will perform garden activities like watering, raking, pulling weeds, picking

vegetables, etc. When vegetables are produced, they will participate in taste testing
and harvesting of produce.
At the end of the school year, both the intervention group and control gorup will
be evaluated and data will be collected in order to determine any change or impact on
vegetable consumption and preference toward vegetables due to the garden-based
intervention.
APPENDIX 1:

Activity/Task

Development of
plan for school
garden and
garden activities
Recruit partners,
local farmers,
parents, teachers,
and community
volunteers
Buy and acquire
donated
equipment and
materials
Construct garden
and plant
seeds/plants
Pre intervention
data collection
Phase 1 of
intervention
Phase 2 of
intervention
Post intervention
data collection
Data and
intervention
evaluation

Year 2015
6 7 8
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Year 2016
10 11 12 1 2 3

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PARTNERS/RESOURCES:
Partners will include the Monroe Elementary School director, staff, school board,
and All Parents Association. Parent, local high school student and community member
volunteers will be recruited to help with the set up, material collection, garden-based

I---I

activities, and field trips. Local high schools that can contribute include Marc High and
Fowler High27. From this group of volunteers, a research assistant and data collector will
be determined to aid in the evaluation of the intervention through administration of the
formulated attitude questionnaire and FFQ. Possible community partners could include
the 4-H Club, the Fresno Farm Bureau, the Irvine-based Western Growers Association,
and the Cooperative Extension Program of Fresno County (UCCE). Through the UCCE of
Fresno, a Master Gardener will be chosen to manage crops, aid in garden construction
and maintenance, and train staff and volunteers. Local farmers will be contacted and
will partner with the school to organize field trips and hands-on activities.
The project director will oversee garden activities and collaborate and the
Master Gardener for garden construction, development of garden activities, and
recruitment of volunteers and resources/materials. The Project director will also
contact Southwest Transportation to set up and coordinate bus rentals for field trips
through the first semester. Parents, teachers, and community volunteers will assist in
garden construction, garden activities, and chaperoning field trips. The project director
will coordinate will local farmers to set up field trips and develop hand-on activities for
the children to participate in while at the farms. These field trips will increase the
farmers exposure in the community and build a strong community tie between
community members and local farms.

EVALUATION:
The two groups will be assessed before the intervention to evaluate differences
in consumption and preferences toward vegetables at baseline. This will be done by
formulating a questionnaire to determine attitudes toward, preferences for, and
willingness to try vegetables, as well as administering a FFQ to determine vegetable
consumption. These evaluations will be preformed again at the conclusion of the school
year to determine the success of the program.
The attitudes questionnaire will be a simple 10 -question survey, created by the
research assistant, and administered by the data collector. It will include questions

assessing the students current attitudes toward, perceptions of, and willingness to try
vegetables. This questionnaire will be administered during both the first and last week
of class, to evaluate progress made through the intervention.
Food frequency questionnaires (FFQs) focusing on vegetable consumption will
also we created by the research assistant and administered by the data collector. These
will determine the frequency, variety, and portion size of vegetables consumption in
students. This will also be administered during the first and last week of classes to
evaluate the effectiveness of the intervention.
The students BMI and weight will also be measured by the data collector. This
will be conduct the first and last week of school, to determine any weight loss or
improvement in BMI as a result of increased vegetable consumption.

SUSTAINABILITY:
Once the garden is built and tools have been acquired, expenses will be significantly
less. Volunteers, parents, school staff or gardeners from the cooperative extension
could become familiarized with the school garden during the initial intervention year
and take over management of field trips (with established farm partners) in Phase 1 and
garden activities during Phase 2. Continuing expenses will include seeds and disposable
items, like garbage bags and gloves and transportation fees to get kids to local farms.
Fundraising efforts will include plant sales and a summer garden party and fundraiser.
Other funding may be acquired from local farms, hardware stores, cooperative
extensions and clubs. A two =year post intervention data collection would be extremely
valuable in measuring if positive outcomes are maintained long term. If the intervention
shows positive outcomes then consideration should be taken to institute it county wide.
This area is very agriculturally focused and would likely be receptive to county-wide
participation of elementary schools.

REFERENCES:

1. CDC. State indicator report on fruits and vegetables, 2009. US Department of Health
and Human Services, CDC; 2009.
2. CDC. Fruit and vegetable consumption among adults---United States, 2005. MMWR
2007;56:213--7.
3. Ogden CL, Yanovski SZ, Carroll MD, Flegal KM. The epidemiology of obesity.
Gastroenterology. May 2007;132:2087-2102. Accessed April6th, 2014.
4. Hedley AA, Ogden CL, Johnson CL, Carroll MD, Curtin LR, Flegal KM (2004).
Prevalence of overweight and obesity among US children, adolescents, and adults,
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5. emedicine.com. Accessed April 23, 2014].
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April 23, 2014].
6. Gatto NM, Ventura EE, Cook LT, Gyllenhammer LE, Davis JN. LA Sprouts: A Garden-
Based Nutrition Intervention Pilot Program Influences Motivation and Preferences
for Fruits and Vegetables in Latino Youth. J. Acad. Nutr. Diet. 2012;112(6):913920.
Available at:
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2212267212001268. Accessed
April 10, 2014.
7. Site HPW. Nutrition and Weight Status - Healthy People.
http://www.healthypeople.gov/2020/topicsobjectives2020/objectiveslist.aspx?topicI
d=29#146172. Available at:
http://www.healthypeople.gov/2020/topicsobjectives2020/objectiveslist.aspx?topic
Id=29#146172.
8. Zhang Q, Wang Y (2004). Trends in the association between obesity and
socioeconomic status in U.S. adults: 19712000. Obes Res, 12(10):1622632.
9. Robert SA, Reither EN (2004). A multilevel analysis of race, community disadvantage,
and body mass index among adults in the US. Soc Sci Med, 59(12):2421434.
10. Rasmussen M, Krlner R, Klepp K-I, et al. Determinants of fruit and vegetable
consumption among children and adolescents: a review of the literature. Part I:
Quantitative studies. Int. J. Behav. Nutr. Phys. Act. 2006;3:22.
11. )Fact Sheet - Prevalence of Diabetes among Hispanics In Six U.S. Geographic
Locations. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2011). Retrieved from:
http://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/pubs/factsheets/hispanic.htm. Accessed April 13,
2014.
12. Ogden CL, Carroll MD, Curtin LR, McDowell MA, Tabak CJ, Flegal KM (2006).
Prevalence of overweight and obesity in the United States, 19992004. Jama,
295(13):15491555.
13. Baskin ML, Ard J, Franklin F, Allison DB (2005). Prevalence of obesity in the United
States. Obes Rev, 6(1):57.
14. Bartle NC, Hill C, Webber L, Van jaarsveld CH, Wardle J. Emergence and persistence
of overweight and obesity in 7- to 11-year-old children. Obese Facts. 2013;6(5):415-
23.
15. County Health Rankings & Roadmaps-Fresno County.
Available at:
http://www.countyhealthrankings.org/app/california/2014/rankings/fresno/county/
outcomes/overall/snapshot. Accessed April 23, 2014.

16. Wang Y, Beydoun MA (2007). The obesity epidemic in the United Statesgender,
age, socioeconomic, racial/ethnic, and geographic characteristics: a systematic
review and meta- regression analysis. Epidemiol Rev, 29:628.
17. )Fresno Fresh Program. Fresno County Department of Public Health (2012).
Retrieved from:
http://www.co.fresno.ca.us/uploadedFiles/Departments/Public_Health/Divisions/A
CU/content/Fr esnoFresh%201%20Page%20Description-%20FINAL%2011-01.pdf.
Accessed April 15, 2014.
18. Harrison, G., Disogra, C., Manalo-Leclair, G., Aguayo, J., Yen, W. (2002). Over 2.2
Million low-income California adults are Food Insecure. Los Angeles: UCLA Center for
Health Policy Research.
19. Pekruhn, Colin (2009). Preventing Childhood Obesity-A School Health Policy Guide.
Available at: http://www.rwjf.org/content/dam/web-assets/2009/01/preventing-
childhood-obesity-. Accessed April 23, 2014.
20. World Health Organization. Population-based prevention strategies for childhood
obesity: report of a WHO forum and technical meeting, Geneva, 1517 December
2009. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2010.
21. Koplan JP, Liverman CT, Kraak VA. Preventing Childhood Obesity: Health in the
Balance. Institute of Medicine: Committee on Prevention of Obesity in Children and
Youth, The National Academies Press, Washington, DC, September 30, 2004.
22. American Academy of Pediatrics. Committee on Nutrition. Prevention of pediatric
overweight and obesity. Pediatrics 2003:112:424-430.
23. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2005. Chapter 3:
Weight Management. Available at: <
http://www.health.gov/dietaryguidelines/dga2005/document/> [Accessed October
3, 2005.]
24. Castro DC, Samuels M, Harman AE. Growing healthy kids: a community garden-
based obesity prevention program. Am. J. Prev. Med. 2013;44(3 Suppl 3):S1939.
Available at: http://www.ajpmonline.org/article/S0749-3797(12)00907-5/abstract.
Accessed November 17, 2013.
25. Robinson-OBrien R, Story M, Heim S. Impact of Garden-Based Youth Nutrition
Intervention Programs: A Review. J. Am. Diet. Assoc. 2009;109(2):273280. Available
at: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0002822308020440.
Accessed October 19, 2013.
26. CDC. Strategies to Increase the Consumption of Fruits and Vegetables, 2011.
Available at: http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/downloads/fandv_2011_web_tag508.
Accessed March 2, 2014.
27. Public Schools K12. Monroe Elementary School.
Available at: http://publicschoolsk12.com/elementary-schools/ca/fresno-
county/062529003774.html. Accessed May 21, 2014.

BUDGET:

Appendix 2:

Direct Costs
I.

Personnel Costs
A. 1 Project Director $15,000: structural design expert for all activity planning.
Project director will oversee and work with Master Gardener to construct the
garden, develop activities and recruit volunteers. She will also make contact with
local farms and set up school district sanctioned field trips with those that agree to
receive and work with the Growing a Love for Veggies program. She will oversee
summative evaluation of activities and data collection and identify any changes that
need to be made.
B. 1 Research Assistant: $8,000 Assists the project director and master gardener
and is responsible for taking calls and maintaining contact with partners and
volunteers through email. Also responsible for managing volunteers. Assists with
pre- and post-data collection.
C. 1 Marc High or Fowler High School Interviewer: $300 Responsible for
administering data collections including: food frequency questionnaires,
psychosocial factor questionnaires, and weight and height measurements.
D. Fringe Benefits: $5,825 Twenty-five percent for 1 Project Director, 1 Master
Gardener and 1 Research Assistant, and 1 Interviewer

II.

Equipment/Materials
A. Materials for garden $1115: 4 garden boxes, Gloves (small and large), 2 spades,
80 bags of soil, organic seeds and plants, shovel, rake, garden hose, fencing, starter
seedling tray, etc.
B. Materials for data collection $250: Paper and ink for questionnaires, educational
materials

III.

Contracted Services

A. 1 Master Gardener $15,000: Will help plan and lead the construction and
maintenance of the school garden. Also will help develop activities for Phase 2 and
help train volunteers, parents and staff how to maintain garden.

IV.

Transportation-$2,400 Rental of charter bus (60 seats) for 5 hrs cost about $500

plus gas. The student will be split in half over the 5 hr period, half will be performing
activities in the school garden and half will travel to a local farm for a field trip, and then
the groups will switch after two hours. This will occur on four different field trip dates.
Contact at Southwest Transportation for field trip arrangements is Shelley Manser at
(559) 834-2895.
V.

Miscellaneous: $2000: For any unexpected expenses or extra supplies that are

needed.
Total Cost: $49,890