The National Farm to School Network sprouted from the desire to support community-based food systems, strengthen family farms, and improve student health by reducing childhood obesity.

What is Farm to School?

Farm to School brings healthy food from local farms to school children nationwide. These programs connect schools with local farms with the objectives of serving healthy meals in school cafeterias, improving student nutrition, providing health and nutrition education opportunities that will last a lifetime, and supporting local small farmers. Farm to School is a comprehensive program that extends beyond farm fresh salad bars and local foods in the cafeteria to include waste management programs like composting, and experiential education opportunities such as planting school gardens, cooking demonstrations and farm tours. The Farm to School approach helps children understand where their food comes from and how their food choices impact their bodies, the environment and their communities at large.

The program teaches students about the path from farm to fork, and instills healthy eating habits that can last a lifetime by introducing children to juicy, local apples and freshly harvested, crunchy carrots. At the same time, use of local produce in school meals and educational activities provides a new direct market for family farmers in the area and mitigates environmental impacts of transporting food long distances. More than 30 million children eat a school lunch five days a week, 180 days a year. If school lunch can taste great, and support the local community, it is a win-win for everyone.

Schools buy and feature farm fresh foods such as fruits and vegetables, eggs, honey, meat, and beans on their menus; incorporate nutrition-based curriculum; and provide students experiential learning opportunities through farm visits, gardening and recycling programs. Farmers have access to a new market through schools and connect to their community through participation in programs designed to educate kids about local food and sustainable agriculture.

During the past 30 years there has been a dramatic increase in obesity in the United States. For children aged 2–5 years, the prevalence of overweight increased from 5.0% to 13.9%; for those aged 6–11 years, prevalence increased from 6.5% to 18.8%; and for those aged 12–19 years, prevalence increased from 5.0% to 17.4%. (www.cdc.gov). Also alarming is the growing trend of unhealthy foods and drinks being available on school campuses, influencing children’s choices towards eating. While our children are eating unhealthy foods, our farmers are losing out on potential markets due to globalization and the growing trends of corporations consolidating agribusiness. Farm to School programs are one solution to this multi-faceted problem that is rooted in our faulty food system. By providing healthier options in school cafeterias and through education that connects the food in the cafeteria to farms and health, children can better relate to how their food choices affect their own health, their family and the local farmer.

Farm to School Chronology

The National Farm to School Program

The National Farm to School Program is a collaborative program of Center for Food & Justice (CFJ), a division of the Urban & Environmental Policy Institute at Occidental College and the Community Food Security Coalition (CFSC). Initiated in 2000, the National Program has spearheaded the development of the farm to school movement across the country, successfully assisting organizations in starting up and sustaining farm to school efforts, fundraising, and providing informational resources, education and training for farm to school stakeholders. When did farm to school programs start? What were the major milestones? This brief factsheet lays out the history of farm to school.

The program is jointly managed by staff from the two organizations:

Center for Food & Justice Urban & Environmental Policy Institute Occidental College 1600 Campus Road | Mail Stop M1 Los Angeles, CA 90041 www.foodandjustice.org www.uepi.oxy.edu Anupama Joshi Program Director Tel: 323-341-5095 Fax: 323-258-2917 Debra Eschmeyer Program Media & Marketing Manager Tel: 419-753-3412 Cell: 202-557-6942

Community Food Security Coalition www.foodsecurity.org Marion Kalb Program Director 3900 Paseo del Sol Santa Fe, NM 87505 Tel: 505-474-5782 Fax: 505-473-3421 Program Policy Manager  110 Maryland Ave NE #307 Washington DC 20002 Tel: 202-543-8602 Fax: 202-543-0978

Origins of the National Farm to School Program date back to a collaborative project led by the Center for Food & Justice. The four-year project funded by USDA Initiative for Future Agriculture and Food Systems (IFAFS 2000-2004) jumpstarted the development of farm to school projects in several states. The lessons, models and evaluation results from this project have been shared nationwide and are providing solutions to issues emerging in other states.

National Farm to School Network

In order to sustain and build on the momentum created through the National Farm to School Program, over 30 organizations across the nation gathered to explore the opportunities for a collaborative national farm to school structure that strengthens and expands activities in states with existing programs and assist others that do not yet have programs. Out of this planning process supported by the W. K. Kellogg Foundation, the National Farm to School Network was born. Eight regional lead agencies and national staff provide free training and technical assistance, information services, networking, and support for policy, media and marketing activities. Click here for a summary of our first year's accomplishments. The National Farm to School Network is supported in part by a $2.4 million grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. The Kellogg Foundation grant enables the Network to establish a viable and sustainable mechanism to coordinate, promote, and expand the farm to school movement at the state, regional, and national levels. Contact Anupama Joshi for more information and join our network here.

Thank You

This website came together with the help of many people who shared with us their information, photos, time, and resources. Thank you to all those who contributed their energy to this project.