Corey Shopshear, left, and Marc DeHoorne, both sixth-graders at Beach Middle School, thought celebrating National Agriculture Week and eating Michigan products was a good idea — and good for the local economy.

Lisa Allmendinger | AnnArbor.com

Travis Heydlauff, a seventh-grader at Beach Middle School in Chelsea, is no stranger to the importance of supporting Michigan agriculture.

“My dad’s a farmer,” he said, raising corn, wheat and soybeans, while Travis raises and shows steers at the Chelsea Community Fair.

He was one of about 600 students at Beach Middle School who celebrated National Agriculture Week with a special Made in Michigan lunch Wednesday that included pepperoni-and-cheese Bosco sticks, several varieties of salad, and Michigan cherry crisp.

Each day there are about 12 choices for lunch at the school, said LeeAnn Shanahan, head cook at the school, who got the idea to incorporate a special Michigan-made lunch after attending a Washtenaw County Farm Bureau meeting in Lansing in December.

In fact, Shanahan and her husband, Tom, own a centennial farm in Lyndon Township, which belonged to Tom’s grandparents.

Quentin Pappas and Brooke Blackledge, students at Beach Middle School in Chelsea, enjoyed a Made in Michigan lunch at school Wednesday, featuring Bosco sticks and Michigan cherry crisp.

Lisa Allmendinger | AnnArbor.com

She has worked in food services in the Chelsea Schools since 1986, and thanks to a grant from Whole Foods Market, Shanahan was able to stock a new self-serve salad bar for students, which features all kinds of salads to fresh fruit.

Harrison Green, a sixth-grader, thought a Michigan meal was “cool” while Marc Dehoorne said he had a neighbor who is a farmer and grows wheat, so he understood that farmers produce the food that people eat.

“I do like salad,” he said. “I think this is good for the local economy, and I plan to savor the cherry thing.”

His friend, Corey Shopshear, another sixth-grader, said his favorite were the Bosco sticks. “They’re awesome.”

Principal Patrick Little said an event like this gives “the students an appreciation for local agriculture and when it’s provided to them, they notice the difference in taste and see the difference.”

Alyssa Allen, a seventh-grader, agreed: “I’m a big salad fan, and I can taste the difference. Local is better.”

From potatoes to corn, apples to pumpkins, cherries, cantaloupe, watermelon and peaches, the students were able to tick off some of the many fruits and vegetables that are grown locally.

“This was a great Michigan choice,” said Morgan Chrisman, a seventh-grader, about her meal, which she chose off a menu as she reached the lunch line.

Mary Hermann, Gabby Gonzalez-Nagy and Morgan Chrisman, from left, liked the idea of supporting Michigan with a special locally produced lunch Wednesday at Beach Middle School.

Lisa Allmendinger | AnnArbor.com

“These are great Michigan products and I want to support my state,” said Gabby Gonzalez-Nagy, a seventh-grader.

Mary Hermann, another seventh-grader, said, “I think we kind of get out of touch with our naturalness,” but eating local food is one way to return to that.

All three friends said they’d been to one of the two Chelsea Farmers Markets and liked the homemade cookies, bread, broccoli and pizza bread.

Kathleen Siler of Freedom Township and Linda Reilly of Lyndon Township, both farmers, represented the Washtenaw County Farm Bureau and reminded the students that “without farmers, you won’t have food.”

Lisa Allmendinger is a reporter with AnnArbor.com. She can be reached at lisaallmendinger@annarbor.com. For more Chelsea stories, visit our Chelsea page.