Missouri Media Coverage

Food from the Farm (MU Extension) by University of Missouri. Food from the Farm (MU Extension). Published 09/09/2011.
Information about Food from the Farm, a University of Missouri Extension program, is available at http://missourifamilies.org/Kindergarten/. Funding for the program also comes from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Health Care Foundation of Greater Kansas City and the Junior League of Kansas City. Read the entire article.

School lunches changing to healthier options by DEANNA CORONADO. Daily Dunklin Democrat. Published 07/12/2011.
When analyzing the changes in school nutrition requirements throughout the U.S. and in the state of Missouri, specifically within local districts like Kennett Public Schools, its interesting to take a look at how the national programs like the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act has changed the look of the lunch tray. Read the entire article.

Nourishing the future leaders of Dunklin County today. Daily Dunklin Democrat. Published 04/22/2011.
As many moms know, where our families and friends live, work, and play is just as important as their access to healthcare and medical services. For the children and youth in Kennett and Dunklin County communities, these keys to long term health and success often begin at school. Farm to School is one way Dunklin County is improving school nutrition. Read the entire article.

Burton: Workshop to connect local crops, schools. News-Leader. Published 03/05/2011.
A goal of the Missouri Farm to School Workshop being held in Springfield on March 30 is to connect schools, universities and hospitals with food grown by local farmers. Read the entire article.

Missouri working to upgrade school lunches by Carah Hart. Harvest. Published 03/01/2011.
Missouri schools will have opportunities to grow their own food and emphasize organic food. “We’re continuing to work with schools to push more fruits and vegetables — even some more locally grown fruits and vegetables — more farm-to-school projects,” Wooten said. Read the entire article.

Workshops aim to bring local foods to local schools. High Plains/Midwest Ag Journal. Published 02/22/2011.
The local food movement is going back to school. "This whole farm-to-school movement is really taking off right now, with a lot of interest and a lot of people trying to find ways to make it work in their community," said Bill McKelvey, Missouri Farm to Institution project coordinator. Read the entire article.

'Sprouting healthy kids' goal of July 27 Farm to School program in Kansas City by Bill McKelvey. University of Missouri Extension News. Published 07/21/2010.
“Sprouting Healthy Kids” will be the goal of a Farm to School program set for July 27 at the Kansas City Academy. The Farm to School initiative is a national effort to connect K-12 schools with regional or local farms to serve healthy meals using locally produced foods. Read the entire article.

Columbia Public Schools adding more variety to school lunches by Hannah Wiese. Columbia Missourian. Published 07/14/2010.
Columbia Public Schools is participating in Farm to School, a program that brings in locally grown produce in for lunches.

“It is something that we thought was a next step for Columbia Public Schools in the growing trends for the desire to know where our food is coming from,” said Laina Fullum, the district's nutrition director. “Kids need more opportunities to be better connected to Missouri land and what is produced here in our state.” Read the entire article.

Columbia 'urban homesteaders' work to live self-sufficiently by Theresa Berens. Columbia Missourian. Published 07/12/2010.
Charlie Triplett describes his childhood experiences with gardening as unpleasant. Although his father, a truck driver, insisted on planting an enormous plot every year, he and his mother were less passionate about the weeding and upkeep. Triplett no longer has to worry about weeding. He and his wife, Annette, try to grow as much of their own food as possible in raised garden beds on their urban homestead, a block off Broadway in the Old Southwest neighborhood. Read the entire article.

Missouri takes on childhood obesity one step at a time by Brian Krebs. Columbia Missourian. Published 06/01/2010.
As director of nutrition services, Laina Fullum works to serve students nutritious meals at school. This year she implemented the Farm to Food initiative. After the 2008 national Farm Bill, school lunch programs are now allowed to give preference to local farmers. Columbia is one of only a handful of Missouri school districts that asks local farmers to grow a variety of produce — including tomatoes, berries, melons, potatoes and onions — to serve in school cafeterias. Initially Fullum and her cross-state colleagues had difficulty getting access to the local food, but the situation is improving, she said.

"What we've run into is a lack of infrastructure and a lack of supply," Fullum said. "So, what we're currently doing is working with a new vendor to help supply us with local fresh foods and vegetables. Read the entire article.

Summit Calls for Local Food in Schools by Erin Stevenson. KOMU. Published 12/02/2009.
A Farm to School summit had Missouri schools and farmers talking Wednesday about a partnership. A meeting at the Boone County Health Department joined agriculture and education for a discussion that could impact Missouri's children. The forum was held by University of Missouri Extension. Farm to School is a group aimed at bringing locally grown and produced foods into school cafeterias. The group advocates "farm fresh" foods, saying they are healthier for students. Read the entire article.

Growing Pains by Marcia Vanderlip. Columbia Daily Tribune. Published 10/21/2009.
Offered but not taken was yesterday's special, a cold chicken fajita wrap - a newer menu item featuring chicken, a jalapeƱo -infused flour tortilla, American cheese and fresh spinach. Canned corn is popular in the cafeteria, but other fresh salad bar items are not. Ice cream is dispensed and heartily eaten. Elementary children get ice cream once a month for Happy Birthday Day, but in middle school, junior high and high school, everyday choices include pizza, deli sandwiches and ice cream. Read the entire article.

Advertising Cooking, Not Reheating by Marcia Vanderlip. Columbia Daily Tribune. Published 10/21/2009.
National School Lunch Week came and went last week without much fanfare. For much of it, I toiled on a story about our local lunch program. After discovering the arcane methods by which federal mandates define a nutritious lunch - based on a fat/carb data-gathering system - I understand why the local folks told me, "Food is not simple."¯ Read the entire article.

Farm to School: Local produce can benefit your school and community!. Healthy Kids Missouri Blog. Published 09/08/2009.
With a garden on the White House lawn, recent food safety scares, and daily media reports about the child obesity and health care crises, more schools and communities are looking for solutions through Farm to School programs. Read the entire article.

School nutrition program integrates Missouri-grown foods by Michelle Pais. Missourian. Published 09/01/2009.
This fall, the district is working toward bringing more fresh produce and Missouri-grown foods into its school nutrition program. Field and Benton elementary schools will participate in the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program, allowing the schools to serve fresh produce to students as snacks during the day. Read the entire article.

Teaching kids to eat healthy by Anya Martin. STL Today. Published 08/30/2009.
Last spring when Cristy Nolton, executive chef of the Graveyard Tavern in Atlanta, prepared radish and cucumber salad in the classroom for first- and second-graders at nearby Burgess-Peterson Academy, the children cleaned their plates, said Betty Jackson, a physical education teacher and wellness coordinator at the public elementary school. Read the entire article.

Forsyth School is part of a national trend by Georgina Gustin. ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH. Published 04/27/2009.
Forsyth, on Wydown Boulevard near Forest Park, is among the first schools in the state to launch such a farm-to-school lunch program - part of a national movement to bring fresher food into school cafeterias by tapping regional farmers and boosting rural economies at the same time. Read the entire article.

Healthy school lunches on the menu by Margaret Stafford. San Mateo Daily Journal. Published 11/17/2008.
Schools - particularly public schools - face several obstacles before starting a farm-to-school program, advocates say. Many schools do not have the kitchen facilities or skilled labor needed to provide more than heat-and-serve meals. "Schools often don't see food or cafeterias as a major investment," said Anupama Joshi, co-director of the national Farm To School network. "It's really sad because research has shown that the food we serve our kids can help them facilitate learning and is tied to performance." Read the entire article.

School Lunch Program Promotes Healthy Eating by Associated Press. Food Product Design. Published 10/09/2008.
Bistro Kids Farm 2 School Lunch Program operates in Kansas and Missouri and aims to promote farm-to-school ideals, a concept introduced in 2000 by the national Farm To School Network. Read the entire article.

Despite costs, healthy school lunches on the menu by Margaret Stafford. The Hays Daily. Published 10/03/2008.
The buffet offers a variety of pizzas, with whole wheat crust, organic toppings and hormone-free cheese. The salad bar includes some greens and vegetables grown without pesticides in a nearby garden, perhaps topped with homemade croutons and organic dressing. And the chef even takes special requests from vegetarians, those wanting gluten-free food or even an extra slice of free-range meat. This isn't a restaurant in one of Kansas City's trendy neighborhoods, but a cramped room in the basement of the Kansas City Academy, a private school for 6th-12th graders in the city's Waldo district. The Academy is one of three Kansas City-area private schools that participate in Bistro Kids' Farm 2 School program, which is committed to improving students' health by offering lunches from organic, natural, locally-grown food. Read the entire article.