Coachella Valley Children's Nutrition Education Program, Palm Springs Cultural Center

Coachella Valley Children's Nutrition Education Program

Since 2010, The Palm Springs Cultural Center's Certified Farmers' Market Program has been working with Coachella Valley elementary Schools to introduce students (primarily third graders) to the State's Certified Farmers' Market Program, to our local Certified Farmers' Markets, to the local farmers that attend the markets, and to healthy eating overall, as a way to maintain good health. 

Students learn that choosing what they eat and where they buy their food can impact not only them, but the people around them in their communities and planet they live on. This program, the Children's Nutrition Education Program (CNEP) provides a bedrock experience for children to eventually become informed and engaged consumers who care about their own health.  The three day curriculum includes classroom visits, a field trip to the market and a wrap-up with both the students and their parents.

 In 2017, the Anderson Children's Foundation came on board as a major CNEP sponsor, allowing us to expand the program to include more schools and more classes. Their participation also allowed us to bring more children to the markets.

The COVID Pandemic required a pause in both in-class visits and field trips to the markets. To overcome this challenge, we worked in concert with the Anderson Children's Foundation to create a video/virtual version of the program. The Fresh Squeeze is the culmination of that endeavor. 

The Fresh Squeeze is a series of informative and entertaining videos that connect the youngest Coachella Valley demographic to a critical part of our shared cultural experience. The videos are designed to work in lieu of our in-classroom presentations and Market Field Trips, and in the future, to complement them. 

The Fresh Squeeze Videos:


Program One: Awesome Avocados

Program Two: A Date with Destiny

Program Three: Money at the Market