If you happened to pass by the Zane Trace Ag shop on Wednesday, Dec. 7, you might have heard Christmas carols playing amidst students calling for more oranges, cheese or summer sausage.
On that day the school’s chapter of Future Farmers of America’s Fruit Sale Committee transformed the shop into a warehouse containing fruit, nuts, cheese, syrup and sauces. The team of students displayed skills in leadership, organization and goal setting as they unloaded, sorted and assembled just over $28,000 worth of inventory. The students also displayed attention to detail and customer service skills as they picked items for each of the 90 orders and loaded them into vehicles for delivery.
Overall, the sale raised just over $6,000 for the Chapter which will be used to fund CDE teams, travel opportunities and supply purchases. The students who participated in organizing the sale gained valuable real-world experience in business skills while those who sold items to customers served as ambassadors in the community for the school and Chapter.
The ZT FFA would like to thank everyone who sold and purchased fruit this year!
In other news, ZT FFA Members clear the woods of an invasive species.
There are over 4 dozen different invasive plants that have been identified as harmful to forests in southeast Ohio. These non-native plants compete for resources with native plants and often displace them in forest ecosystems. The Zane Trace FFA Chapter took a step towards eliminating invasive species from ZT property by inviting members to help cut out swaths of bush honeysuckle growing the the woods near the Athletic Complex. In just 4 hours on Nov. 22, students were able to clear nearly 1.5 acres of land of bush honeysuckle, grapevines and autumn olive, three very invasive plants.
The work was made possible by a grant from Tractor Supply Company and the efforts of ZT FFA members.
The woods is now more open which will allow native species of trees such as maple and walnut to grow while limiting species that are not beneficial. It will also allow the installation of tubing for collecting maple sap for syrup this winter.
In other matters, the Culinary Club held a Chili Cook-off for December FFA Meeting.
Students in all three classes learned the art and science of preparing “soup for a group” when they made three large batches of chili to serve as the meal for the December FFA meeting. The students practiced food safety when browning meat, cutting peppers and heating thei tomato juice they canned from the ZT garden.
The students also learned about the cost of preparing their own chili versus buying ready-made and had fun developing their own uniquechili flavors for their classes. In the end the chili made by 7th period using Isaac Detty’s recipe won the popular vote!
Everyone enjoyed the chili bar at the December meeting and had fun making it during class.
