Plow to Chow: 2014

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Hickory Grove Farm

As stated in our previous post, Hickory Grove Farm is the primary farm which provides the majority of the fresh ingredients for the chefs in The Commons.

A little bit about good ol’ Hickory Grove:

Gates opened in 2013
25-acres of land (14 acres being plantable)
Has two greenhouses
Has a hydroponic lab (that grows tomatoes using coconut fiber!)

For the 2014-2015 growing season, Hickory Grove Farm projects they will have shiitake mushrooms, 1,000 heirloom tomato plants that will produce more than 20,000 lbs. of tomatoes, and 60 free-range chickens that will produce more than 300+ organic eggs each week!

Hickory Grove is currently growing a wide variety of fruits and vegetables. Below is the complete list, which is divided into two categories: fruit and vegetables.

FRUITS	VEGETABLES
Cantaloupe	Pumpkin
Watermelon	Bell peppers
Tomatoes	Cucumber
Peaches	Yellow squash
Pears	Zucchini
Apple	Green beans
Plums	Banana peppers
	Okra
	Corn
	Hot peppers
	Eggplant
	Kale
	Onions
	Red leaf lettuce

COMING IN THE NEAR FUTURE -->

-Fresh goat’s milk made by Hickory Grove’s own goats!

-On-site hiking trails open to the public

Check out some awesome recently taken photos of the farm's progress below!

The three farm goats

Various fruits/vegetables

Eggplant

Bell pepper

Indigo

This blog will be brought to you on a week-to-week basis by Sydney Rowe and Natalie Konieczny, summer interns for the Culinary & Hospitality Services at Kennesaw State University. Feel free to contact us! ☺

Sydney: sydney.rowe@uconn.edu
Natalie: natalie.koniecz1@yahoo.com

The Commons

The first process of KSU’s sustainability efforts is the farm-to-campus initiative. In this step, vegetables, fruit, dairy products, and even honey are produced from the three local farms mentioned in the previous post. Every day at The Commons, the chefs use these farm-fresh ingredients in order to serve the best quality food they can to the KSU community. Good health starts with a good meal and The Commons has been serving wholesome and delicious food to the students at KSU ever since it first opened in 2009. Serving approximately 5,000 students and staff on a daily basis during the school year, those involved in the management and operations of The Commons are always seeking new measures of sustainability and quality to uphold the highest possible standards of food service they can.

Another method in which The Commons maintains freshness in ingredients is the University’s hydroponics system. Hydroponics is a system that allows for plants to grow through the use of a nutrient-enriched solution opposed to soil. A major benefit to this type of farming is that the crops yielded from hydroponic treatment retain much more nutrients than crops that are soil-based. And not only will you be consuming more micronutrients, but the taste will be much richer as well. You can see how the hydroponic system works right from The Commons! There are several stations located inside the commons, where you can witness the growth of lettuce, basil, and other leafy greens, providing roughly 700 heads of lettuce every 3 weeks.

The Commons has been notarized for its efforts to provide excellent food service in an eco-friendly manner by the bestowing of several awards.

Some of these awards include:

~Nation’s largest LEED-Gold certified collegiate dining facility
****LEED- Leadership for Energy and Environmental Design
~ 2014 Loyal E. Horton Bronze Award Winner for “Catering-Small Event”
~ Innovator of the Year Award recipient for our “Comprehensive Waste Management
Initiatives”
~ 2013 60 Best Colleges for Food in America, ranked #8 by The Daily Meal
~ 2013 NRA Sustainable Dining Operations Award Winner
~ 2013 NACUFS Silver Award Winner for “Residential Dining Concept”
~ 2013 Best College Dining Hall, ranked #4 by BestColleges.com
~ 2012/2013 included in The Princeton Review’s “Guide to 322 Green Colleges”
~ 2012 Top 10 in The Daily Meal’s “Best Colleges for Food in America”
~ 2012 NACUFS Sustainability Award Recipient

The Commons continues to find ways to grow in its sustainability efforts and overall enhance the KSU dining experience for all. Look out for our next post which will give you a little insight to what goes on at Hickory Grove Farm!

Sydney: sydney.rowe@uconn.edu
Natalie: natalie.koniecz1@yahoo.com

Monday, June 23, 2014

A Warm, All-Natural Welcome to our Blog!

Welcome to the new official blog for Kennesaw State University's Plow to Chow Sustainability Initiatives! On this website, you will find regular updates about the progress of the farms that supply The Commons with fresh ingredients along with the on-campus herb garden and the weekly farmer's market including information about the local vendors who will be attending each week (as it varies). Furthermore, interviews will be conducted for the farm workers who tend to the life on the farm on a daily basis and the local vendors of the market so you may learn more about their products and where they come from.

There are 3 farm locations in the state of Georgia that provide fresh produce and dairy for the food operations located on KSU's campus. The farms that support KSU's sustainability efforts are Harmony Hill Organic Farm and Apiary, Apple Springs Farm, and Hickory Grove Farm.

For those of you who have never been to the KSU Farmer's Market, it takes place every Thursday evening from 4-7pm in the parking lot next the Waffle House off of Chastain Road (for the summer of 2014).

http://dining.kennesawstateauxiliary.com/