WEBB CITY, Mo. (AP) - When Levi Jennings was asked his opinion of the free meal provided this month at the Webb City Farmers Market, he looked at his plate, picked up an heirloom cherry tomato the size of a pingpong ball, popped it into his mouth and gave an emphatic thumbs-up.
Jennings, from Tulsa, Oklahoma, was one of several cousins who were visiting Webb City and decided to take advantage of the free kids meals served at the market on Tuesday nights.
In addition to the tomatoes, the menu included chicken strips, lunchbox peppers and corn on the cob. The fresh produce came from the Fredrickson Farms in Carl Junction, and Jennings' endorsement of the tomatoes is one of the reasons Tami Fredrickson said she is happy to supply food for the dinner, The Joplin Globe (http://bit.ly/1Oin8B6 ) reported.
"It's a nice feeling to know that all of those kids are eating something that you grew," she said.
The free Tuesday night meals for children have been served at the market since late June and will continue through Aug. 18.
Eileen Nichols, director of the farmers market, said the dinners are paid for through a grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food and Nutrition Services program and administered by the Missouri Department of Health. Nichols said she first heard about the free meal program while taking part in an online seminar. At the time, Nichols said, only a couple of farmers markets nationwide participated in the program.
"Now we are one of only about five or six markets in the country (in the program), but it will grow," she said.
When the program was first proposed in Webb City, the hope was that 75 meals would be served, but on that the first night, 90 meals were served and Nichols said she would like that number to grow to 125.
She also said there are no economic guidelines attached to the free dinners; the program is open to anyone under the age of 18 regardless of income. The goal, she said, is to expose children to healthy, locally grown food.
Nichols said the free dinners wouldn't have happened if the market hadn't found a willing partner to prepare and serve the meals. That partner, she said, turned out to be a local church looking for a way to return a favor. Central United Methodist Church of Webb City recently had been given a double convection oven for its church kitchen, and members were looking for a way to put it to good use. When Nichols approached the church for help with the free dinners, she said, the members responded in a big way.
"The meal is prepared in their inspected kitchen, and they handle all of the paperwork, purchasing, payroll and recruiting, scheduling and training of volunteers," she said.
Clint Lambeth, pastor of Central United Methodist, said it takes seven or eight volunteers to prepare and serve the meals each week in addition to numerous planning sessions to work out costs and to set each week's menu.
"Our folks like to volunteer a lot," he said. "The market was able to find a willing team to work with, and it (the program) just took off."
All of the produce served at the weekly dinners is provided by local growers, Nichols said. Officially, the farmers are supposed to charge her at least for their wholesale costs for the products they donate, but since the program began she has yet to receive a bill from any of the growers.
Fredrickson said one reason growers support the free meal program is it helps promote what they do.
"I look at it as an advertising expense," she said.
Information from: The Joplin (Mo.) Globe, http://www.joplinglobe.com