This October’s inaugural Tour de Fresh four-day, 275-mile cycling event along California’s coastline, is of special significance to Oneonta Starr Ranch Growers in Wenatchee, WA.
Not only is Oneonta a Gold Sponsor and a staunch supporter of the Tour’s goal to raise funding for 40 school salad bars across the nation, but the company will also be cheering on one of its own during the lead-in to 2014’s PMA Fresh Summit in Anaheim.
Tom Drury, member of Oneonta Starr Ranch Growers’ domestic sales team, will represent the company as one of 40 riders in the event. Drury, a veteran cyclist and Ironman participant, is no stranger to grueling competitions and said he trains according to time of year and “what’s on the race/adventure calendar for the season.”
He said, “If there is an Ironman on the horizon, I’ll log 300-450 miles a week. If my climbing partners and I have a speed ascent of Mount Rainier or Mount Hood, it’s more like 200-300 miles per week on the bike.” Off-season he trains with a heavy pack, “filling up the rest of the time.”
Oneonta Marketing Director Scott Marboe lauded both Drury and the event itself, which is part of an industrywide effort to provide healthy, fresh options for schools and education for students and educators alike.
“We are very committed to United Fresh’s ‘Let’s Move Salad Bars to Midwest Schools’ campaign,” Marboe said in early April. “Providing a good selection of fresh fruits and vegetables to kids in school is a big step in the fight against childhood obesity and other health issues. We’re proud to do this and proud of Tom for his part.”
According to Tour organizers, the inaugural ride is a collaborative industry event that starts in Carmel, CA, on Oct. 13 and finishes in Anaheim on Oct. 16.
Cindy Jewell, director of marketing for California Giant Berry Farms and Anthony Gallino, vice president of the California company’s sales, came up with the idea for a not-for-profit event and the goal of raising funds to finance the school salad bars.
The Tour de Fresh website, tourdefresh.com, notes that “… academic research and actual experience in schools across the country are increasingly demonstrating that school children significantly increase their consumption of fruits and vegetables when given a variety of choices in a school fruit and vegetable salad bar. When offered multiple fruit and vegetable choices, children respond by trying new items, incorporating greater variety into their diets, and increasing their daily consumption of fruits and vegetables.”
Of the obvious win/win for health and industry, the Tour de Fresh site went on to say the benefits from placing salad bars in schools “extends beyond the healthy foods consumed during the breakfast or lunch hour.” The White House Task Force on Childhood Obesity also has endorsed schools using salad bars and upgrading cafeteria equipment to support providing healthier foods to kids.
By organizing an event such as the Tour, the produce industry educates school districts that might be unaware of the benefits of salad bars or unable to fund such projects.
“Let's Move Salad Bars to Schools is creating the opportunity make change,” the web site said.
Source: Oneonta Starr Ranch Growers
