State policy plays a powerful role in bringing local food to schools, growing school gardens, and expanding food education for millions of children, farmers, and communities nationwide. That’s why we’re excited to introduce a new resource to support partners in this work: the State Farm to School Policy Handbook: 2002-2023. 

Created by the National Farm to School Network and the Center for Agriculture and Food Systems at Vermont Law and Graduate School, this Handbook breaks down every farm to school and early care and education (ECE) bill and resolution introduced from January 1, 2002, to December 31, 2023, across all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and US territories. This resource allows users to explore legislation by state, topic, and year, while also providing insights into legislative trends, case studies, and additional resources related to state farm to school policy.

Whether you’re new to farm to school or working to expand policies in your state, the Handbook is a great tool. Use this resource to discover innovative policies in other states, see the trends in the farm to school policy landscape, or learn more about farm to school policy in your own state or region.  

What’s new in this edition?

The State Farm to School Policy Handbook: 2002-2023 builds on a survey that was originally released in 2011, and updated in 2013, 2014, 2017, 2019, and 2021. Alongside this latest edition, we’re introducing an interactive database featuring all coded bills from the Handbook. This powerful tool helps you easily search for example policies by state, year, status, and topic. Explore the database here: https://www.farmtoschool.org/policy/state-database

What are the key takeaways?

Between January 1, 2002 and December 31, 2023:

  • 48 states, DC, and two US territories introduced 809 farm to school bills and resolutions.
  • 45 states, DC, and two US territories passed 369 farm to school bills and resolutions.
  • The popularity of farm to school legislation increased rapidly in the past few years. Between 2021-2023, 43 states and DC proposed 296 bills that relate to at least one of the core elements of farm to school—128 of these bills passed. 
  • The most common bill category was Local Food Purchasing Incentives, representing 22% of introduced bills.
  • Farm to ECE has also seen tremendous growth: in 2021-2023, 18 states proposed 39 bills and resolutions that support or relate to farm to ECE. That’s 13% of all bills! 

In this new edition, we have also broadened our scope beyond the three core elements of farm to school: school gardens, education, and local procurement. This update includes three new policy areas that also have a significant impact on the success of farm to school: 

  • Expanding school meals access: California and Maine were the first states to establish permanent School Meals for All in 2022, and this type of legislation has gained momentum ever since. Since 2021, 32 states have introduced 86 School Meals for All bills, and eight states (CA, CO, ME, MA, MI, MN, NM, VT) have currently implemented permanent programs.   
  • Supporting the rights of essential workers and elevating the work of child nutrition professionals: The well-being and agency of all people who get food from the farm to the table are integral to farm to school. From 2021-2023, there were 37 bills across 37 states introduced to elevate child nutrition professionals or protect essential workers’ rights. 
  • Funding kitchen infrastructure and equipment upgrades: The appropriate kitchen infrastructure is necessary to serve high-quality, scratch-cooked local food in school cafeterias. From 2021-2023, we observed 49 policies across 14 states that funded kitchen infrastructure and equipment upgrades. 

How can you use the Handbook?

The data in this Handbook demonstrates that momentum for universal school meals and farm to school policies has surged in the past few years—more than a third of all farm to school bills ever introduced were introduced between 2021 to 2023. Eight states implemented permanent universal meal programs, and 43 states and DC introduced farm to school bills.  

The momentum is real, but we’re also navigating an uncertain policy landscape. With shifting priorities at the federal level, state-level work is more important than ever, and the State Farm to School Policy Handbook is a powerful resource to help you navigate policy opportunities tailored to your state’s needs. By strengthening local coalitions, advancing smart state policies, and working together across sectors, we can ensure this progress continues.

EXPLORE THE HANDBOOK

Have questions about this new resource or need a thought partner on how to connect with your state lawmakers? Don’t hesitate to contact our Policy team for support! We look forward to hearing how your work continues to grow the farm to school movement, state by state. 

The State Farm to School Policy Handbook: 2002-2023 is co-written by National Farm to School Network and the Center for Agriculture and Food Systems at Vermont Law and Graduate School (CAFS). This project was made possible with support from the National Agricultural Library, Agricultural Research Service, US Department of Agriculture.