In searching the depths of culinary education, educators must take into account the fact that career paths within the hospitality industry typically take nonconventional routes, making it difficult, at best, to decide the depths at which a particular trend should contribute to any core curriculum. Preparing students to embark on the same lifelong journey of learning requires a strong fundamental foundation seasoned with a wide variety of awareness from which a future professional can draw from should that individual find himself or herself in a position of need. That said, how do we teach heirloom?

The most basic beginning to building awareness and transferring knowledge is to create an interest within your student. Constructing this curiosity can be as simple as relying on the senses in comparing tomato varieties in the prime of their season, as they are the most eye-opening of all heirloom products when it comes to delivering the message that not all foods are created equally.

Another inexpensive yet effective tease that is perhaps more visual than anything is to introduce students to a variety of dried heirloom legumes. While the flavor profiles and textures may be similar to any other bean, the diversity in heirloom beans provides the visual learner with a group of colors, shapes and sizes likely not experienced before.

Still other modern students find interest in being good stewards to the global community through supporting it in a sustainable fashion. This particular category of students will likely buy into the process of learning heirloom awareness through understanding biodiversity and the idea of preserving inherent genetic contributions of lesser-used breeds, thus equating to food security in the future.

Many instructors and most students never give a thought to the fact that more than 80% of all dairy cows in the United States are Holsteins. Emerging or evolving pests and or pathogens requires the global community to understand that maintaining diversity within our food products equates to preserving our ability to protect our food supply in the instance that one variety is susceptible to a particular blight. The Great Potato Famine should have taught us all a better lesson in ensuring a safe food supply.

Once the curiosity evolves into a basic foundation of awareness, the obvious next step prior to application is to focus on instilling a better understanding through terminology. This is an excellent chance to work in some collaborative learning exercises given the fact that no two students will find the same definition of these revitalized terms. This exercise will prove to assess the effectiveness of your approach while, at the same time, ensuring that the group is ready to move on. Additionally, as we all know, a quick vocabulary test is always a good indicator of outcomes.

The following is a short list of pertinent vocabulary terms to accompany a foundational understanding and awareness:

Heirloom. Typically refers to plants or plant foods that are handed down through a family from generation to generation. Most agree, however, that the variety must be a minimum of 50 years old. The plant must be open-pollinated (grown from a seed that produces a seed that will produce a consistently similar product) and, where plant foods are concerned, the final product is genetically different from those that dominate industrial agriculture today.

Heritage. Livestock breeds bred over time to accentuate their ability to withstand disease and or adverse conditions rather than for their ability to produce milk, eggs or meat in the most economical fashion. These varieties of animals are considered to be the traditional varieties that were more common before the primary breed reduction dictated by industrial agriculture.

Heritage vs. Heirloom. Most would agree that “heritage” refers to historical livestock breeds and “heirloom” refers to plant varieties. Both must be produced on a sustainable and/or organic farm, thus mimicking the natural environment that they historically adapted to.

Sustainability. Acting on the responsibility required to preserve those objects that allow for the endurance of life as a global community, aimed at the well-being and conservation of society. Because organic products can be shipped thousands of miles, they are not as sustainable as buying locally in an effort to support the community and save the earth simultaneously.

Organic. Refers to the production of foods without the use of pesticides, synthetic fertilizers or growth hormones either by injection or through feed varieties that are anything but organic. In short, organic farming concentrates on all things natural.

Now it is time to implement some experiential learning. Organizing a dinner, practical project or mystery basket around a particular product will allow the exploration and awareness to continue. Perhaps the most important lesson where heirloom or heritage products are concerned is one that has already been taught—a lesson that is paramount to culinary education and can only be solidified by highlighting quality products. Simplicity coupled with foundational application will always reign supreme.

The latest buzzwords are not impervious to bastardization, and through arming our students with knowledge, future experiences become increasingly more thought-provoking and change-oriented. It is these experiences that oftentimes solidify the opinions of the generations that are moving forward to carry on the journey that will always be.

G. Allen Akmon, CEC, CHE, is the culinary-arts chair of the National Center for Hospitality Studies at Sullivan University in Louisville, Ky.