Do You Want Tofu With That Organically Grown Celery?
The Gifft Hill School has acquired new store managers, Mo, Melanie, and their baby, Chione Love. With new management comes new philosophies and morals in the way the store is run.
Mo and Melanie are restricting the merchandise in the store to be completely organic and meat free. This was the original concept of the store, but was not well enforced in the beginning.
Mo and Melanie are passionate about what they do and what they believe in. Their main goal is to teach students about foods and the effects it has on the body.
It’s important to educate students on eating organically, explained Mo.
“You guys are the one who are going to change the world,” he said. “Organic food is full of love. Anyone can use fertilizers and chemicals to grow foods, but organic food is grown without any extra products, except for one key thing – love.”
The new management has caused controversy among the students, who wonder whether organic, while better for you, is better to the palette.
“I would go to the store even if I didn’t go to this school,” said one student.
Others, however, want more choices. Students throughout lunch can be heard saying, “Where’s the cream filling?” and “Where’s the red meat?”
“If you’re a vegetarian or vegan, you’ll love it, but, I’m upset that they don’t offer students who are not vegetarians other options,” said GHS junior Lincoln Liburd. “I wish there was more of a balance between the tofu and the meat, the Not Dogs and the Lay’s Potatoes Chips. I’m a growing boy and I need to eat.”
“Veggie products just don’t fill my appetite,” Liburd added.
So how can all students be made happy? Is there a real balance? How do students get the protein needed for growing bodies? They are trying to be acuminating, but, Mo, the main chef of the school store, cannot consciously cook meat and feel morally satisfied with himself, he explained.
It’s a personal choice, they both claim, and they suggest students do more research on eating organically.
New Elective Classes
Next year at the Gifft Hill School, Culinary Arts and Nutrition/Holistic Living will both be offered as electives to students, taught by Mo and Melanie themselves. As of now, students are not yet working for the store, but both managers are welcomed to the idea. They would love for all students to get involved in the store, by bringing in art for the walls, or coming in during study halls and helping out, they explained.
Will students choose to become organic beings, and become conscious of what they are actually eating, or will kids be kids and choose junk food through and through?
While one might mean rejecting parent’s choices and up-bringings, the other might mean remaining comfortable in a present state. Will students choose to broaden their horizons and have personal growth?
Doing research and learning more about the FDA and organic foods is the only solution. While students are debating on whether or not vegetarian surrender will take place, they will be packing lunches with good old-fashioned ham and cheese with a soda on the side, and maybe an apple (to keep the doctor away, of course).
