An FFA Agriculture Food Science elective at Los Banos High School has been under massive renovations for the past six years and is finally transformed from a simple Home Economics room to a Food Science laboratory.

LBHS received $289,000 through the Central Region Agriculture Pathway Grant. This money was used to purchase better equipment and upgrade technology for all of the Agricultural and FFA endeavors on campus. From this grant, $40,000 was specifically allocated to the Ag Food Science class to purchase commercial grade  tools including a walk-in cooler, ice machine, upgraded ovens and stoves, and cutlery.

In addition to these kitchen tools, the grant money provided an online food handling and safety curriculum through a career and technical education online program.

FFA Agriculture Food Science instructor, Mr. Stuart McCullough explains that participation in an online course is going to, “Allow our students to obtain a Food Safety Certificate that will help them in the future for employment and meets the school’s pathway requirements.”

Projects in the class include working the self-sustaining garden throughout the year. One popular vegetable grown are peppers. Peppers are hand picked from the garden located on campus and then taken to the food science laboratory where they are cleaned, cut, and separated. From there the peppers are placed in a dehydrator and eventually ground into a fine powder. This chili powder is used throughout the year in sausages, sauces, and meat seasoning.

The agricultural food science class has also cooked and prepared various dishes in order to teach proper knife skills, food chemistry, and overall food handling expertise. Jocelyn Alanis, a student, describes her favorite meal produced in class as a “Smoked Nevada Rainbow trout with cream cheese and butter crackers served with green salad and homemade vinaigrette.”

Alanis later speaks about food safety portion of the class saying, “I enjoy the fact that we are not only taught how to cook, but the reasons why cooking is so precise and why chemistry plays a major role.”

The updated Agricultural Food Science class at LBHS has opened up a broad spectrum to those students who would otherwise be unable to use these facilities. The class is continuously thriving and implementing lifelong skills, and simultaneously having fun while doing it.