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City Program Teaches Citizens How To Eat Healthier

BALTIMORE (WJZ)—The city of Baltimore is getting healthy about food by launching the Healthy Food Initiative. It's an effort to get nutritious meals to those most in need.

Kai Jackson has more.

Spinach, kale and radishes—it's all fresh and home grown by the Real Food Farm Project.

The purpose: "To get people to eat healthier and fresher foods," said Kevin Richardson,12th grader.

That's the same goal for Baltimore City: getting citizens to eat healthier and fresher foods, one plate at a time, from the field to the fork.

"We come out here in the after-school program, and we come out here and plant seeds and water them and take care of them," said De'Erricka Hawks, 6th grader.

The Healthy Food Initiative is a new partnership with middle and high school students who've been growing food since 2009 in hoop houses.

The United Way of Central Maryland and former Ravens cheerleader Molly Shattuck are also partners.

"Teach our young people healthy eating habits, reducing obesity, reducing diabetes and heart disease and helping our citizens lead healthier, happier lives," said Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake.

"Together we're going to teach families literally how to do it, how to eat healthy, how to make the right choices," Shattuck said.

Over time, the Real Food Farm Project hopes to have about 12 of the hoop houses up and even some open-field farming. In fact, you can say these kids and their teachers subscribe to the idea that you feed a person from the farm and you feed them for a day. You teach a person from a farm and you feed them for a lifetime.

"They can learn how to grow their own plants from their own backyards or they can learn how to come to Lake Clifton and buy some of our fruits and our vegetables," said Lavionne Culp, 12th grader.

"I don't care if it's one container. I don't care if it's a 2 by 3 foot space to grow some food of their own, that would be a success to me," said Cindy Hartzler-Miller, Civic Works.

The Real Food Farm is a project of Baltimore's Civic Works. You can purchase food from their winter harvest through the end of the month. The spring harvest will start soon. Click here for more information.

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