Experimental wheat grows at the White House
April 22, 2013 | 08:50 AM
Wheat sprouted in time for the annual public tours of the White House gardens the weekend of April 13-14. (Eddie Gehman Kohan/Obama Foodorama)
Tourists who gaze through the fence of the South Lawn of the White House these days can see wheat growing for the first time in the White House kitchen garden.
First Lady Michelle Obama planted experimental varieties of bread and club wheat, Sam Kass, the White House assistant chef who is in charge of the garden, told the North American Agricultural Journalists recently.
Kass declined to name the varieties or to name the breeder, following a White House policy of not revealing the exact sources of the first family’s food.
The wheat plants, which the first lady and a group of school children from around the country planted by hand on April 4, could be seen by people who took the annual White House garden tour on April 13 and 14. The journalists did not get a tour of the kitchen garden this year due to the sequestration budget cuts, but met with Kass in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on April 9.
Kass said the wheat, which makes up one bed about the size of a dining room table, will be harvested by hand.
“It is not a giant wheat field,” Kass said. He joked that he and his fellow staffers might be the only people whom Secret Service allows on the South Lawn with scythes.
“We will harvest late July-ish,” he said.
While the wheat is experimental, Kass was careful to note it is not genetically modified.
"There are no genetically modified crops in our garden," he said. Kass also noted that club wheat, which is typically used for cake flour and baking, has a head that looks like a club, almost “a ball.”
John Deere lawn tractors await duty at the White House, but not in the kitchen garden. (Eddie Gehman Kohan/Obama Foodorama)Kass said he would like to plant more wheat if he can get the National Park Service managers of the overall White House gardens to give him more space
(Most of the White House garden is lawn, trees and flowers. During the public tours, small John Deere tractors could be seen stored on the White House outdoor basketball court, but they are not used in the kitchen garden.)
Kass also has plans to expand the wheat crop. “I haven’t gotten sign-off on tearing up the South Lawn,” he joked.
But he added “There’s a big bed, a big bed in the back and we’re gonna plant the next round of wheat there.”
Kass, who is executive director of “Let’s Move,” the first lady’s campaign against childhood obesity, is also the administration’s senior adviser on nutrition policy.
“The garden remains a symbol of our food, but also of the inherent risk of putting seeds in the ground, the basic truths about how we feed ourselves,” he noted.
The first lady is pleased with the national reaction to the garden and her anti-obesity campaign, and will continue it and do more in the second term, Kass said.
“There been a real awakening,” he said. “Farmers are being held up heroes and gaining celebrity status, which is awesome. People are brewing beer, which we are doing here at the White House.”
Kass was asked about backlash from conservatives who claim that the first lady’s initiative and changes to the nutrition rules for federally subsidized school meals are turning the country into a “nanny state.”
“We’re in Washington,” he responded. “If we’re not getting criticized, it means we’re not doing anything. It’s good that there is discourse and dialogue and debate.”
“We are genuinely trying to get this right,” he added. “I am happy to have the debate with anybody who is not supporting the health of America’s children.”
Noting that obesity is the No. 1 reason for disqualification for military service and that retired generals have called obesity one of the greatest threats to national security, Kass said the health of the nation’s people is a base of national security.
He also defended the first lady’s work with Wal-Mart because that company can get fruits and vegetables to families cheaper. Sales of fruits and vegetables and seeds are up, he noted.
“There is a niche for people who care about their health,” he said, but all Americans should be able to afford healthier food.
Kass also dismissed concerns that some companies like Birds Eye have developed computer programs to encourage healthy eating, but require kids to spend time in front of the computers when they could be getting exercise.
“What is the alternative in terms of reaching kids? Should we send them a letter?,” he asked.
Kass said he and the first lady will focus on surrounding families with greater information. For all the Let's Move activities — both nutrition and exercise, he said — the key word for the rest of the Obama presidency is “more.”
