Abstract
Growing up near Watsonville, California, a major agricultural hub, I always had access to fresh and organic produce. I was shocked when I moved to Hawaii and realized that most of the produce here is shipped from thousands of miles away. I could buy the same Driscoll’s strawberries, but for almost double the price and half the freshness. This is both unsustainable and unrealistic for many people, especially low-income families, and as a result, they experience food insecurity. I learned more about food inequality through an online Stanford course called Introduction to Food and Health and was inspired to help make a difference in my community. My project will allow me to combine my passion for cooking with my desire to help my community, and I can’t wait!
Milestones
Ideation (SEPT 10)
Olivia Rose
September 1, 2021
Business Innovations
Nutritious and Delicious: Helping One Kid at a Time
Low-income families experience food insecurity because they don’t have access to fresh, local, organic produce. Even those who can afford local produce often don’t know what to do with the exotic ingredients grown on this island: how to prepare them, what to eat them with, and what their health benefits are. Eating locally grown food is especially important in Hawaii because the majority of our produce comes from the mainland, which is not sustainable. Families experiencing food insecurity in Hawaii and across the country often resort to fast food because they can’t afford/don’t know how to eat healthy, which has led to a multitude of problems across the nation. This problem is always prevalent, but especially when families face unemployment or lower household income as many have during the pandemic. Everyone, whether facing food insecurity or not, would benefit from eating locally grown produce and learning how to prepare more balanced meals. A solution to this problem would be a step in the right direction towards addressing food insecurity in Hawaii.
Works Cited
Nakano, Miki. Food insecurity in Waimea – Teacher Perspective. 26 Aug. 2021. Interview with Miki (previous HPA teacher and garden volunteer) to learn about her involvement in and perspective on Sarah Newcomb’s previous Capstone project.
Quayle, Willie. Food insecurity in Waimea – Teacher Perspective. 7 Sep. 2021. Interview with Mr. Quayle to discuss possible food donators and ways to expand the project/make it sustainable.
Newcomb, Sarah. Food insecurity in Waimea – Student Perspective. 8 Sep. 2021. Learned about Sarah’s project and discussed how I will continue it and expand it. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1CrYVFl0MFIZDVOwc5SPBeTqM-PZQaoI_/view
Pitch (SEPT 28)
Pitch Slide Deck 
IMG_8626.MOV
Formal Proposal (OCT 15)
Olivia Rose
October 21, 2021
Nutritious and Delicious: Helping One Kid at a Time
Abstract:
My project will provide ready-to-cook meal kits for low-income and food-insecure families in Waimea. The boxes will include all the ingredients and instructions to make a healthy recipe along with information on the nutritional value of the ingredients included. The majority of the ingredients in the boxes will be donated by local farms and my school’s gardens, and the rest (including things like dry goods and seasonings) will be supplemented using money from the grant. This will provide families with an opportunity to prepare a healthy, home-cooked meal and get every member of the family involved, including the kids so they can understand the impact of high-quality, low-cost food and meeting their nutritional needs.
Introduction:
Low-income families experience food insecurity because they don’t have access to fresh, local, organic produce. Even those who can afford local produce often don’t know what to do with the exotic ingredients grown on this island: how to prepare them, what to eat them with, and what their health benefits are. Eating locally grown food is especially important in Hawaii because the majority of our produce comes from the mainland, which is not sustainable. Families experiencing food insecurity in Hawaii and across the country often resort to fast food because they can’t afford/don’t know how to eat healthy, which has led to a multitude of problems across the nation. This problem is always prevalent, but especially when families face unemployment or lower household income as many have during the pandemic. Everyone, whether facing food insecurity or not, would benefit from eating locally grown produce and learning how to prepare more balanced meals. A solution to this problem would be a step in the right direction towards addressing food insecurity in Hawaii. My proposed solution is to provide meal kits to 60 families within two low-income neighborhoods in Waimea at least 3 times between now and April. This is a continuation of Sarah Newcomb’s project from last year where she distributed boxes of produce and recipe cards to families in need. The difference in my project is that I will provide every ingredient necessary to make a healthy recipe, not just the produce, so that any family can participate no matter what ingredients they have access to.
Goals:
My goal is to have donated at least 180 meal kits in total (60 donations 3 times) by the end of my project. I am focusing on quality over quantity because that is how I can have the biggest impact on these families’ lives. I want to interact with them and tailor my service to their needs while still ensuring I achieve my goal of teaching others about eating healthy. The customers’ satisfaction with my service will measure the success of my project. I hope they will have enjoyed the process of making my recipes and learned valuable lessons about how to have a healthier diet.
Research
Interviews with stakeholders: see Appendix A for summaries/dates of each interview
Paʻina by Ocean: researched and spoke to Jaydene for inspiration and advice about my project.
Stanford Introduction to Food and Health online course: I took this course during the summer of 2020 and I will use my knowledge from this course to put together healthy recipes and teach my customers about eating healthy.
Food Handler Card online certification: I got my Hawaii State Department of Health Food Handler Certificate so I can safely distribute food for the meal kits.
Recipe research: the recipe for Nov 6 distribution is inspired by this recipe.
Material research: I compared the prices of materials from Amazon and Costco to determine the most cost-effective sources while still prioritizing sustainability. I decided to buy compostable/recyclable packaging materials in bulk from Amazon and supplemental ingredients in bulk (when applicable) from Costco.
Kupu Hawaii Youth Sustainability Challenge: I applied for a $1000 grant to fund my project. Here is a copy of my application.
Information I am missing is customer feedback from families in Noelani. I plan to interact with the families after the Nov 6 distribution to get an idea of how they liked the meal kit and how I can improve for future distributions.
Implementation
October:
- Submit Kupu grant application and wait to hear back if I am accepted
- Get Hawaii State Department of Health Food Handler Certificate
- Make flyers (explain my project, date of first dist. – Nov 6, recipe, proof of certification, link to TikTok)
- Outreach to families in Noelani neighborhoods
- Gather materials for 60 meal kits
November:
- Design recipe cards and nutrition cards and have Coach McCoy translate them to Marshallese
- Make a YouTube tutorial for the recipe
- Gather donations before Nov 6
- Put meal-kits together before Nov 6
- Distribute meal-kits on Nov 6
- Get customer feedback
- Raise money through GoFundMe and/or fundraising with Mr. Quayle
December-May:
- TBD based on customer feedback, but each month will look similar to November
- Distribute meal-kits once a month
- Potential bonus meal-kits for the holidays
- Potential partnership with Chloe
- Potential tech additions (website with recipes and QR codes)
- Potential workshops with HPA students (value-added products from the garden ie. sugar cane juice, canned beans, jams, etc.)
Challenges I anticipate: outreaching to the families may pose a potential challenge as I don’t want to make anyone feel like they are receiving unwanted charity. I hope that by framing my project as an opportunity/activity for the families to learn about eating fresh, local, healthy ingredients, and through my connection with Coach McCoy, I will be able to develop relationships with the families and get their feedback after the first distribution on Nov 6.
Project management tool: Trello
Resources
Resource Request Proposal – Prototype Distribution
Depending on the results of the prototype distribution, I will follow a similar resource layout for each distribution. With an average of about $330 each time for at least 3 distributions, the total cost will be around $1000. I hope to fund the project using money from the Kupu grant (still waiting to hear if I am accepted). If I expand my project to more distributions, I will raise extra money through a GoFundMe page and/or by working with Mr. Quayle on a fundraising project (ie. selling sugar cane popsicles).
Conclusion
My goal for this project is to provide an opportunity for families in the Waimea community to learn about nutrition and enjoy a healthy meal utilizing the ingredients grown on this island. Eating fresh, local produce is a privilege that many people can’t afford and I hope to make it more accessible. This project will allow me to further my interest in nutrition and health through cooking and will give me valuable skills for starting a nonprofit business. I would like for my project to continue and I plan to make that happen by recruiting underclassmen to participate in the project (by helping with packaging and/or holding workshops to prepare some specialty food). I will also explore some options to potentially make it a government-owned business.
Appendix A: Resources
Demo/Prototype (NOV 23)
Final Presentation Link
Product Creation (MAR 9)
Showcase (APR 25-29)
Exemplary presentations communicate how you have grown and gained insights into who you are and what you can do. In this phase you will:
- Present your Capstone work
- Share your product
- Engage in reflection through question and answer with an authentic audience
Legacy (APR 29)
Secure the continuum of your capstone product and journey by creating a white paper, Standard Operating Procedure, Training Manual, and/or digital artifact you are allowing rising seniors for decades to carry your capstone product and ideas forward. Here is where you lay the foundation to do so. In this phase you will:
- Create a white paper to document and capture your Capstone journey
- Propose future work
