The Trenton Times published the following article on October 8, 2013. To read the full article, click here.

Millhill child care center in Trenton receives grant to fund vegetable garden

By Jenna Pizzi/The Times of Trenton 
on October 08, 2013 at 6:40 AM

TRENTON — A grassy plot adjacent to the playground at the Millhill child care center will be transformed into a garden, growing fresh vegetables and fruits, with funding from the state.

The school is one of eight early-childhood centers in the state that will receive $1,500 to plant the gardens. Two years ago, similar grants have funded garden projects at elementary and middle schools, but this is the first year the funding is being awarded to child care centers.

“When children get involved and put their hands in the soil, a transformation really does take place,” said state Secretary of Agriculture Douglas Fisher.

Fisher said gardens that the state will fund through “mini-grants” will create a great opportunity for children to learn, at an early age, to make healthy food choices. The state received the $324,151 Team Nutrition Training Grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture last year. Each childcare center will receive $1,500. The money will also go to revive grant-funded garden programs at four schools — including Ethel McKnight Elementary School in East Windsor — which were started through the grant program during the 2010-2011 school year. Each of those schools will receive $1,000 each.
Seven new elementary and middle schools will be awarded $2,500 each to start the program.

The state is working with the Rutgers Cooperative Extension’s Department of Family and Community Health Sciences to implement similar garden programs statewide.