Source: USDA, 11/19/13

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced grants for 71 projects spanning 42 states and the District of Columbia that support the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) efforts to connect school cafeterias with local farmers and ranchers through its Farm to School program.

"In rural and urban communities across the country, Farm to School programs teach students where food comes from, while providing healthy foods that are grown locally on farms and ranches across the nation," said Vilsack. "These programs also create new market opportunities for local farmers and ranchers interested in partnering with nearby school districts – and by helping to create an even more diverse and thriving agriculture sector, Farm to School efforts hold potential to create new jobs in rural areas."

Selected projects will serve more than 13,000 schools and 2.8 million students, nearly 45 percent of whom live in rural communities. Projects in NC include:

Chapel Hill‐Carrboro City Schools
Chapel Hill, NC
Grant Type: Implementation; $74,448
The goal of this Farm to School Implementation proposal is to fully develop the Home Base Together Achieving Good Grub Education and Development (TAGGED) curriculum, manual, and train‐the trainer classes in the Chapel Hill Carrboro City Schools, and to work with a sample of North Carolina public schools (urban and rural) to facilitate the use of more locally grown foods in schools by building school cafeteria infrastructure and human capital in the child nutrition staff. Chapel Hill Carroboro City Schools, with consultation from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Center for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention, will augment the Home Base curriculum with lessons on menu planning as well as communication skills to help child nutrition service staff to encourage healthy eating among students and provide items that use locally sourced foods through the North Carolina Farm to School Program and/or direct purchasing. Our partnering schools can choose to participate in one or all of our activities that address known barriers to successful implementation of farm to school programs.

NC Public Health Foundation
Raleigh, NC
Grant Type: Support Service; $84,908
This project will demonstrate collaboration between schools, government agencies, nongovernmental and community based organizations, agricultural producer groups, and countless other community partners through a strong statewide coalition. Funding will support the Farm to School Coalition of NC in developing partnerships and conducting statewide planning and operations related to farm to school efforts. Given that 56% of North Carolina students qualify for free or reduced price school meals, the statewide work of the Coalition will reach a significant number of students and families in need of healthy, affordable local food and resources to support healthy eating. By the close of the grant, the Coalition will have developed a statewide directory of farm to school leaders, contacts, and resources, and will have hosted eight regional stakeholder meetings and one statewide conference.



These projects highlight the critical need for a new Food, Farm and Jobs Bill now more than ever, said Vilsack. Producers need renewed and expanded access to Farm Bill programs to fuel the growing demand for local food in new markets, including school meals programs, and to increase economic opportunities for America's farmers and ranchers.

USDA Farm to School grants help schools respond to the growing demand for locally sourced foods and increase market opportunities for producers and food businesses, including food processors, manufacturers, and distributors. Grants will also be used to support agriculture and nutrition education efforts such as school gardens, field trips to local farms, and cooking classes. For a complete list of FY14 Farm to School grant recipients, please see: http://www.fns.usda.gov/sites/default/files/FY_2014_Grant_Award_Summaries.pdf

USDA recently released the results of the first-ever Farm to School Census, which showed that in school year 2011-2012, school districts purchased and served over $350 million in local food, with more than half of participating schools planning to purchase more local foods in the future. School districts that missed the opportunity earlier in the year to respond can submit information regarding farm to school practices through November 30, 2013.