Thursday, October 11, 2018 is Great Lakes Apple Crunch Day. The purpose of the day is to celebrate National Farm to School Month by crunching into locally and regionally grown apples. Everyone, regardless of your age, is welcome to Crunch!
Here are some details from Wisconsin who coordinates this multi-state event.
- Location: Any site including K-12 schools, early care settings, hospitals, colleges/universities, business campuses, state agencies and other organizations across Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Ohio
- Details: Celebrate National Farm to School Month by crunching into apples at NOON on Thursday, October 11. Everyone is welcome to Crunch! Although we aim for a collective Crunch on October 11, you are welcome to Crunch any day or time in October that works for you.
- Join in! Last October 1,543,781 students, children, teachers, and good food supporters across the region crunched. Let’s join forces and meet the ONE MILLION CRUNCH goal again this year! Visit the Great Lakes Apple Crunch Facebook page to get updates and see photos from last year’s Crunch. You can find the page at: https://www.facebook.com/GreatLakesGreatAppleCrunch
In Ohio you can actually register a group by logging in at: https://uwmadison.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_e5tFJJ58wr0g3at
In addition another web-resource that is being promoted this fall is: https://ohioapples.com/ This website will connect you with local orchards. You are able to search by GPS, by county, by orchard or by keyword. There is also information about apple nutrition, recipes and information on handling and storing Ohio apples.
So whether you take a crunch tomorrow as part of a larger event, be sure to enjoy some local apples before the season disappears.
Earlier this month, I was part of a behind-the-scenes tour at a local orchard in Northwest Ohio. As part of the tour we did an apple tasting of a dozen varieties - both antique varieties and those that are newer. The owner shared with the group about their involvement in the Midwest Apple Improvement Association. To learn more about this group of growers, check out their website at: http://www.midwestapple.com/index.php
Happy National Apple Crunch Day - one day early!
