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What is Farm-to-School?
The Farm-to-School Program is an initiative seeking to bring nutritious fresh food from local farms to schools including K-12, colleges and universities. Virginia schools currently spend more than $6 million annually on fresh produce. The Farm-to-School Program in Virginia will open the door for more of those dollars to stay within the state and support Virginia farmers by promoting opportunities for schools, distributors and growers to work together to increase the volume of locally grown product served in school cafeterias and dining halls.
Incorporating local products into school meals also enhances the educational opportunity for students who benefit by learning about the seasonality of food products, the importance of supporting local agriculture and the benefits associated with reducing transportation cost and protecting farms and farmland in our communities.
The Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS) Farm-to-School effort includes the administration of certain federal entitlement programs, such as the Department of Defense (DoD) Fresh Program. Virginia’s entitlement this year is more than $1 million. In order to increase volume of Virginia produce distributed through such programs, VDACS works with both Virginia growers and distributors to make sure each side is aware of mutual business opportunities.
This Web site helps communicate information on the availability of Virginia produce to the state’s schools, both public and private.
“The Farm-to-School program is about creating connections between growers, distributors and educational institutions. The program can play a role in addressing the problem of childhood obesity and an added benefit is that using local produce in school menus supports the Virginia Agricultural Economy.”
Todd P. Haymore, VDACS Commissioner
Leanne DuBois
Coordinator, Farm-to-School Program
leanne.dubois@vdacs.virginia.gov
804.225.3663
Virginia Farm to School
The Virginia Farm to School program is an effort to increase the amount of fresh and nutritious Virginia Grown products offered in schools and to promote opportunities for schools and local farmers to work together.
Congratulations to all the schools who celebrated
Virginia Farm to School Week!
November 9 – 13, 2009
Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services partnered with the Virginia Department of Education and many other community groups and volunteers throughout the Commonwealth to advance Virginia’s first Farm to School week November 9-13, 2009. All schools in the Commonwealth, kindergarten through college, were encouraged to purchase, serve, and promote locally grown foods in their cafeterias The Department of Education groups the State into 8 geographic regions and every region reported at least one school district engaged in either a Virginia Grown menu item or activity associated with Farm to School week!
If you have any questions or comments, please don’t hesitate to contact me at leanne.dubois@vdacs.virginia.gov or 804.225.3663.
Leanne DuBois
Virginia Farm to School Coordinator
Farm to School Week News
USDA Food and Nutrition Services Report:
Rappahannock County Elementary School: Farm to School Day
Postcards from Floyde: Farm to School Harvest
Virginia Schools Participate In Farm-To-School Week November 9 - 13, 2009
Greene County: A Fresh Approach to School Lunches - Green County
New Castle Record: McCleary Students Learn the Value of Growing Fruits and Vegetables
Madison Eagle: Madison County Schools using Local Produced Items
News Virginian, Waynesboro: Fruits of Labor
WTVF Public Radio story (Local food Hub and Farm to School)
Blogs about Farm to School week
Local food Hub: Charlottesville
Harrisonburg City Public Schools Blog Spot
School Events Celebrating Farm to School Week
Hollymead Elementary School Is Celebrating Farm To School Week
Madison County Public Schools
Rappahannock County Public Schools
Local Food Hub to Celebrate Virginia Farm to School Week, November 9th – 13th
The new Farm to School Tips, Tools & Guidelines for Food Distribution & Food Safety
Manual is intended to provide information, insight and useful tools for farmers and school food service directors interested in the Farm to School (FTS) program participation, distribution and food safety. The manual also includes information on two new tools for use by farmers and school food service directors that are currently being used in Oklahoma: a distribution cost template which will help producers understand the true costs of produce delivery and assists in the determination of “farm gate” values for their crops, helping them to make determinations regarding the optimal delivery methods for their FTS produce and a produce calculator which will help farmers determine the amount of produce to be delivered to meet the demands of a school nutrition program and figure cost per serving of produce.
This project and manual was made possible with grant funds provided through the USDA-AMS Federal State Marketing Improvement Program (FSMIP) with matching funds provided through state partnerships.
Getting Started — Farm to School 101
Virginia Apples are in Season
Where to find Virginia Apple Growers
Virginia Grown Apple Fact Sheet
Check VirginiaGrown.com for seasonal produce.
NEW!! Farm to School Virginia Produce Availability Chart – Provides the time periods when fruits, vegetables and other farm products are available in Virginia throughout the school calendar year.
Farm to School Program On-line Forms
Show your interest in supporting the Farm to School efforts in Virginia by signing up your school, farm or distribution company. Submit the free online form and your contact information will be added to our Farm to School website under the appropriate category. The listing works as a match making site to identify farms, schools and distributors who have expressed interest in participating in the Farm to School program. Working together to make Virginia Farm to School grow and succeed.
Farm Form
School Form
Distributor Form
Produce Poster – How can anything that tastes so good, be so good for you? Fresh, local Virginia grown fruits and vegetables are saturated fat free and cholesterol free. In fact, many are totally fat free, as well as sodium free and provide antioxidants to help reduce problems.
Virginia Grown Coloring Book (pdf)
Virginia Grown Logo — Low-Res Full Color
Virginia Grown Logo — High-Res Full Color
Teaching our kids about Virginia agriculture, nutrition and food safety, while feeding them Virginia grown products, is easy.
Eat Smart-Farm Fresh! – A Guide to Buying and Serving Locally-Grown Produce in School Meals.
Small Farms/School Meals Initiative – A step-by-step guide on how to bring small farms and local schools together.
The Lunch Box
The Lunch Box is a web-based portal that enables all schools and school districts to make a healthy difference for all children in America by providing relevant information and the pragmatic tools necessary to make good food available for all kids.
School Gardens
Best Practices for Using Produce from School Gardens.
National Farm to School Network
The portal for farm to school information in the U.S, with features including an e-newsletter, and access to information about new programs, upcoming events, news and funding opportunities.
Sales & Market Development Regional Staff:
Region 1: Eastern Butch Nottingham |
757.787.5867 |
757.787.5973 |
Region 2: Northeast Philip T. Hickman |
804.371.6157 |
804.371.7786 |
Region 3: Southside D. Stanley Duffer |
434.572.4568 |
434.572.8234 |
Region 4: Southwest Danny Neel |
276.228.5501 |
276.228.6579 |
Region 5: Northwest Dave Robishaw |
434.984.0573 |
434.984.4156 |
Region 6: Southeast Gail M. Milteer |
757.569.1100 |
757.562.6104 |
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Buy Virginia Grown
The new Virginia Grown interactive site is the fastest way to locate specific Virginia Grown products, farms and farmers markets in your area.Virginia Shipper Directory
This directory is made available to assist wholesale buyers in locating top-quality Virginia Grown fresh fruits and vegetables.Wholesale Farmers’ Markets – Four state-owned, private-sector operated markets provide shipping points for Virginia fruits and vegetables.