Moshi, TZ – School Task Force quick response protects 1500 kg of corn for school breakfast – 18 Aug 2017

Quick response time by the School Breakfast Farm Task Force at Mwangaria Primary School protected 6 months of hard work and 1,500 kg of corn from potential losses due to rain and rot. The school’s corn was in its final week of drying on the stalk when the short rains season arrived unexpectedly early while students were still on vacation. The Task Force responded quickly, organizing nearby students and parents to come to the school and harvest corn before the rain caused any damage.

For 6 months, parents and students at Mwangaria Primary School have been tending an acre of corn at their school farm. One week before they expected to harvest, rains started falling. The 4 members of the Task Force recognized the danger and immediately began walking to the school and making phone calls to organize parents and students to come help them harvest the corn and move it inside. If dried corn gets wet on the stalk it can begin to rot and the harvest will be lost. Within 24 hours all of the corn was picked and moved inside.

At final count 1,500 kg were harvested. This should be enough corn to feed students daily breakfast for almost 90% of the school days in 2018.