From Fairfield Farm and to broader issues, such as global food systems, students and faculty brought numerous ideas to life through recent Farm Week events.

Farm Week ran from October 16 to 21. The programming was created not only to highlight the farm and its harvest, but also to inform students about where our food comes from, and how to be more sustainable as a community. 

Nithya Chundi ’23, co-captain of the Fairfield Farm Ecosystems and Adventure Team (FFEAT), said, “Farm Week was born out of the idea that here at Hotchkiss, we have a place to celebrate the integral role the food system has in our lives. While we constantly consume food, most of us rarely know who or what helped bring that food to our plates. Farm Week is a way for Hotchkiss students to celebrate this complex global operation and gain awareness of the issues that it creates.”

A myriad of events took place each day, beginning with a farm festival on Sunday, October 16, which included fall festivities such as pumpkin carving, apple cider, and cider donuts. On Wednesday, October 18, the dining hall served its first vegetarian-only meal with fresh produce from Fairfield Farm. 

The concluding event took place on Friday, October 21, the opening day of Family Weekend, when parents were invited for a tour of the farm. Throughout the week, student leaders involved in sustainable food initiatives and local experts from Howling Flats Farm and Hudson Carbon, a non-profit soil laboratory, discussed topics that ranged from meat consumption to soil carbon sequestration. 

Mrs. Sidran, farm education coordinator, said, “Farm Week came about because we wanted to find a time in the fall to feature not only the farm-fresh vegetables, but issues in agriculture and the food system. Working together with our Agriculture Council students and our farmer, Bridget Lawrence-Meigs, we were able to choose topics for each day.”

Students interested in further exploring sustainable food at the school can look forward to Sunday farm volunteer hours, SEA initiatives, and courses such as Sustainable Food Systems and Honors Acroecology.