How We Get Our Food from Farms to Supermarkets
Published:
May 12, 2021
Contributor:
Jeannette Tuionetoa
Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning if you decide to make a purchase via my links, I may earn a commission at no additional cost to you. See my disclosure for more info.
Open up your child’s mind to a world of benefit by teaching them more about how we get our food from farms to supermarkets.
It’s easy to let kids go throughout their days just thinking food, “Poof!” got to their table and bellies like magic.
Especially if you live in a busy city, kids rarely are exposed to markets where they meet the actual people who have worked so hard to grow their fruits and vegetables.
I bet many kids don’t even know that people grow their own food anymore.
Put some feelers out, and you will shortly discover that many kids think food just comes from the local supermarket/grocery store, boxes, cans, etc.
It wasn’t until I moved to a small island that I really thought about the importance of teaching my children about where our food comes from.
There are only two supermarkets here, and they are extremely expensive. However, there are small markets with people selling the food they have grown and picked.
My husband’s family had land plots in the “bush” they call it. People who have plots of land in the bush can either grow in the land or leave it for nothing at all.
The skill of growing root crops dates back to the beginning of this civilization, yet within the last century or so there has been a moving away from tending to the land to grow food.
It has been hard to see young boys not knowing how to feed their families as they once did and knowing the disadvantage this puts them at.
Slowly the knowledge of producing food and sustainable living has almost disappeared.
So my husband made it a point to take my son with him to tend to the land every few days. It is hard work, but the harvest is well worth it all.
It is a blessing to my son and husband to be able to pull the harvest and hand them out to our friends and family.
Yet, there are people who plant and harvest as their means of making a living. Farmers supply these foods to grocery stores and supermarkets.
Our children should know the work it takes to put food on their table and fill up their belly.
It may sound silly, but it’s important to tell your kids that milk comes from a cow, not a carton, and that chickens actually lay the eggs we eat but it isn’t always easy to get them to do it.
Here are a few ways to help your students understand how we get our food from farms to supermarkets.
1. Show your kids a farm-to-fork infographic and images so they see it with their own eyes.
Farm to Table | WA Grown
Learning About Where Food Comes From Info. And Infographic | WonderBaby
FARM TO FORK – Science Food Systems FREE | Curiosity and the Hungry Mind
2. Do some farm-to-table activities with your kids.
Farm to Table Fun For Kids – Activities, Worksheets, and Coloring Pages | Nourish Interactive
Grocery Store Preschool Activities | Living Life and Learning
Teaching Kids Life Skills: Food Shopping | Education Possible
FREE Printable Grocery List for Kids | Mine for the Making
19 Grocery Store Games for Kids (Money Lessons + Keep them Busy!) | Money Prodigy
Five Fun Farmers’ Market Learning Activities For Kids | What We Do All Day
Where Do Vegetables Grow? Gardening Craft With FREE Printable | Totschooling
3. Watch some kid videos on where food comes from.
Videos – Farm to Fork | Food a Fact of Life
Gossner Foods – Farm to Table for Kids | DairyUTNV
Farm-to-Table Teaches Kids to Eat Local | WLWT
The Kids Table: A Pintsize Farm to Fork Film | Colin Parker
4. Visit a local farm.
Go on a farm tour with your family. Sites like Taste of Home and Local Harvest help you to find the best local farm tours in every state throughout the year.
Explore farming more in-depth with this Farm Notebook from Daily Skill Building.
Learning About Farming All Around the World
FREE Farm Animal Cheat Sheets Fact Cards
Farm (FREE) Resources for Upper Elementary
FREE Resources to Help Kids Explore Life on the Farm
Story Prompts Around the Farm (FREE)
5. Go berry picking (or U-pick farm).
Head over to PickYourOwn.org or other sites to find a farm near you.
They also have crop calendars available so that you know what is grown throughout the year in those local farms.
6. Grow a plant or herbs with your kids.
Easy Plants to Grow for Kids | Little Sprouts Learning
Quick Growing Seeds for Flowers and Vegetables to Grow with Kids | Rainy Day Mum
Easy Plants To Grow With Your Kids In Your Garden | My Homebased Life
8 Easy Plants Kids Can Grow From Seed | Crafts on Sea
7. Plant a garden.
How to Make a Vegetable Garden with Kids | Montessori Nature
Gardening with Kids | Homeschool Preschool
Measurement Garden Hands-On Math Activity and FREE Printable | A Little Pinch of Perfect
FREE Printable Garden Journal for Kids | Sunny Day Family
Growing Gardens with Kids FREE Printable Garden Journal | Raising Life-Long Learners
FREE Garden Printables for Kids | Teaching Mama
8. Find a local farmer’s market and buy from there instead of large grocery chains.
10 Ways To Learn At The Farmers Market | At Home with Holly
Farmer’s Market Treasure Hunt | Create’s Studio
8 Fun Ways to Enjoy Farmers Markets with Kids Throughout the Year | Rural Mom
Five Fun Farmers’ Market Learning Activities For Kids | What We Do All Day
FREE Farmer’s Market Activity Download | The Littles and Me
9. Weave in books throughout your year or unit about growing foods or homesteading.
Grocery Store Books For Kids (Unit Study) | Mommy Evolution
Teaching Kids Where Food Comes From – Booklist | Gift of Curiosity
FREE Printable Book List! 11 Books About the Grocery Store | PA Promise for Children
10. Engage your kids with farm and grocery store play centers and dramatic play centers at home.
Grocery Store Theme for Preschool (Dramatic Play) | Homeschool Share
EASY Kids Play Center: Farmers Market Dramatic Play | Inspired Motherhood
Grocery Store Play Literacy | Getting Giggles
FREE Printable Groceries for Pretend Play | Moms Crafters
How to Set Up A Grocery Store Dramatic Play Area | Early Learning Ideas
FREE Grocery Store Pretend Play Printables | Yes, We Made This
The truth is that there are hundreds of farmers and thousands of processors, retailers, and packagers that help get our food to the supermarkets for us to purchase for our meals at home.
There is a process that gets food from farms to supermarkets, and arming our children with that information helps them understand the world around them a bit better.
However, most of all we need to teach our kids that the food they eat comes from God’s beautiful and bountiful creation.
