Salem’s youth farm still eager for more in its most productive year yet

Heavy metal music blasted in the background as teenagers skipped around Marion Polk Food Share’s Youth Farm during a morning harvest.

The 33 students split into groups to prepare sheet-pan pizza with tomato sauce made from tomatoes grown on the farm, while others picked peppers, eggplants and squash.

On a harvest day in August, they were having fun while participating in something bigger than themselves — producing food for people in need.

Youth Farm is a leadership and empowerment program for teens ages 13 to 18. Summertime brings the most activity to the farm, with teens busy supplying the produce for Food Share’s Farm Share Rx program.

Eggplants, beans, tomatoes and more fill weekly prescribed boxes of vegetables for the program. Participating clinicians in Salem, Grand Ronde and S