Champions for Nature looks at where your food comes from and how to waste less of it. You'll explore local farms, learn why some neighborhoods lack fresh food, and find ways to help. Then you'll pitch in on a conservation project.
Why it's worth it
Food connects you to farms, families, and the land. In this adventure you'll find out what's grown in your state, why some neighborhoods can't easily buy fresh food, and how much food gets thrown away. Then you'll help with a conservation project, because caring for the land is caring for the food we all eat.
Start this week
- Look through your kitchen with your adult and find one food that was grown or made in your state.
- Put a paper on the fridge and list every food your family throws away for a few days.
- Ask your adult where the closest farmers market or community garden is.
Requirements · 6
Every official requirement and part, numbered to match Scouting America, in plain language. Sign off against the official wording (opens in a new tab).
- Requirement 1
Identify foods grown or processed in your state
Tip: Look at food labels or ask a grocery worker which foods come from your state.
For example: Depending on where you live, foods from your state might include apples, corn, cheese, peanuts, citrus, or seafood. Check labels or ask a farmers market vendor where their food comes from.
- Requirement 2
Find out the benefits of buying food that is grown or processed locally
Tip: Visit a farmers market and ask farmers why buying local helps the community.
- Requirement 3
Explore what a food desert is
Tip: Learn what a food desert is and talk about why some areas don't have stores with fresh food.
For example: A food desert is a place where people live far from a grocery store with fresh fruits and vegetables, so it's easier to buy chips and soda at a gas station than lettuce or apples.
- Requirement 4
Explore what a food oasis is
Tip: Find out what a food oasis is, like a community garden or market that brings fresh food closer.
For example: A food oasis brings fresh food closer: a community garden in an empty lot, a farmers market that takes food benefits, or a mobile market truck that visits neighborhoods.
- Requirement 5
Learn ways people can cut down on food waste
Tip: Track food your family throws away for a week. Try ideas like using leftovers or composting.
For example: To waste less, plan meals before shopping, eat leftovers for lunch, put older food at the front of the fridge, freeze bread before it goes stale, and compost peels and scraps if you can.
- Requirement 6
Take part in a conservation service project
Tip: Help plant a community garden, clean up a park, or volunteer with a conservation group.
Places to visit
Ask an adult to set it up, and go with your family, den, patrol, or crew.
A farmers market or community garden
Growers can tell you what grows in your area, when it's in season, and why buying local helps.
How: Go with your adult or patrol, or have an adult contact the market manager or garden coordinator to arrange a short talk.
A county extension office or demonstration garden
Extension experts and Master Gardeners teach how local farms and gardens grow food.
How: Have your adult call the extension office and ask about youth programs, 4-H events, or a garden tour.
Talk about it together
- What food from your state surprised you?
- How would your family's meals change if you lived in a food desert?
- What did your family throw away the most, and what could you change?
- How did your conservation project help the land or water near you?
Helpful reads
- Cub Scouts: a guide for families, How Cub Scout ranks and adventures work from kindergarten through fifth grade, what an adult partner does, and how to keep it fun at meetings and at home., Families · Leaders · 4 min read
- From Arrow of Light to a troop, What changes when you join a Scouts BSA troop, how to visit and choose one, good questions to ask, and how to make your first year a great one., Youth · Families · 4 min read
For leaders & parents
- Plan a trip to a farmers market or local farm.
- Partner with a community garden for the service project.
People & places that can help
- County extension office — Information on local farming and gardening.
- Local farmers market — Meet farmers and learn what grows nearby.
- U.S. Department of Agriculture (opens in a new tab) — Facts about food and farms.
- EPA: Preventing Wasted Food at Home (opens in a new tab) — Easy ways families can waste less food.
- USDA Farmers Market Directory (opens in a new tab) — Find farmers markets near where you live.
- National 4-H (opens in a new tab) — Youth programs about gardening, farming, and food.
Pairs well with
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Tips, examples, and questions are ideas from experienced leaders, not extra requirements. Your unit leader or counselor decides when a requirement is complete.