Activity: Savoring Flavors
Local Tastes Compete!

Author: Eve Pranis*

Overview: Students design and conduct a taste test to compare locally grown produce items with those that have come from afar.

Materials: samples of one type of fruit or vegetable (see Laying the Groundwork), plates (1 per item students will taste), napkins, toothpicks (optional)

Background
Where our food comes from depends in part on the region of the country we live in, the season, and where we shop. But the bulk of the food we eat today comes from far-flung places. Even our "fresh" fruits and vegetables often come from huge industrial farms in this country or other parts of the world. By the time a tomato has been harvested; packed; transported by boats, trucks, trains, and planes; stored or processed; and brought home to eat, it may be several weeks old and devoid of flavor. What's more, its nutritional value will have plummeted on the journey! The riper a fruit is when it's picked and the sooner you eat any produce after picking it, the more nutrients it contains. And that's just for starters.


Laying the Groundwork
You don't have teach students about the differences between homegrown (or locally raised) foods and their long-distance cousins; let their taste buds judge! Challenge your group to set up a classroom taste test to compare tomatoes or other fruits grown locally - ideally ones they've raised themselves - with those that came from afar. (Students may have to talk with the produce manager of a store to find out where each item originated.)

Tip: If you buy supermarket tomatoes for this activity, look for ones obviously packaged for traveling; you'll get more dramatic differences when you compare them with vine-ripened fruits.

Exploration
1. Explain to students that they will need to make some decisions about how to set up their taste test. Here are some questions to explore together as you plan the event:

• Should we compare flavors of one or more fruits or vegetables?


• Do we want to have a "blind" test so we won't know whether we're tasting a local or imported fruit?


• Which qualities will we describe and compare (e.g., texture, flavor, smell, consistency, juiciness, color, or just overall flavor)?


• How will we gather data from tasters? For instance, will we "rank" each item on a scale of 1 to 4, share descriptive words for each bite tasted, or just vote on whether the local or long-distance choice is better? What will we do with the data?

2. Before students step up to try samples, ask, How do you predict each choice will taste? What observation, experience, or "hunch," is behind your prediction? After the tasting, ask, How did the flavor of each item compare with your prediction? What words would you use to describe it? What aspects other than flavor did you notice (e.g., texture, juiciness)? Encourage students to stretch their language skills by using new descriptive words such as acidic or mealy.


Making Connections
Have students organize their data, decide how to display it, and try to make sense of it. Ask, What do you notice about your findings? What can you conclude or how would you summarize them? What new questions do you have?


*Activity inspired by Italy's Saying, Doing, Tasting: Taste Education Journeys in School.

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More Taste Education Articles and Activities

Cultivating Taste: Beyond the Food Pyramid

Come to Your Senses
Feast Your Eyes
Food: A Touching Experience
Growing a Knowing Nose
Flavor Sleuths: Making Sense of Taste

Standards Addressed by Taste Education Activities


Photo: Santa Cruz Slow Food

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