Agriculture education program brings kids back to basics

Students learning where our food, clothes, shelter come from

SAN ANTONIO – San Antonio kids get a dose of knowledge Thursday, learning about the foods they eat, the clothes they wear, and where it all comes from.

Northern Hills fourth-grader Wes Helmer's favorite food is pizza. That's pretty typical for a kid but unlike many other kids, Wes now knows where that cheese comes from.

"Cows being milked!" he smiled.

Thanks to the Kids, Kows, and More program hosted by the Texas A&M AgriLife Extention Service and Southwest Dairy Farmers, Helmer was exactly right.

The students learned about dairy, beef and cotton production, as well as vegetable production, nutrition and the water cycle.  It's a lot to take in, but important for these kids to learn.

"So you can be healthy in life," Wes said.

"So we can know how milk comes from,"  said Northern Hills fourth-grader Adaani Pagan.

They also learned where a lot of other things come from. Some deodorants are made from beef bi-product, in addition to things like toothpaste, make-up products, and the insulin that diabetics need to survive.

"Everybody's a consumer so you're involved in agriculture whether you realize it or not," said Bexar County's Agriculture and Resources Extension Agent Roy Flora.

Flora said he hopes now that these kids do realize that, they'll have a greater respect for nature, and all the things it can create.


About the Author:

Courtney Friedman anchors KSAT’s weekend evening shows and reports during the week. Her ongoing Loving in Fear series confronts Bexar County’s domestic violence epidemic. She joined KSAT in 2014 and is proud to call the SA and South Texas community home. She came to San Antonio from KYTX CBS 19 in Tyler, where she also anchored & reported.