Sourcing Produce

The success of a pilot Farm To School salad bar program in California could open doors for the locally grown movement. Last month marked the fifth anniversary of the Farmers’ Market Salad Bar Program in Riverside, CA, where students enjoy fresh produce from local growers.

USDA Under Secretary for Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services, Kevin Concannon, honored students and staff at a local elementary school in the Riverside Unified School District and praised them for their efforts in providing more healthy options in their school menus through the Farm To School salad bar program.

“The salad bar program at the Riverside Unified School District provides a unique opportunity for students to not only enjoy fresh fruits and vegetables from local farmers, but also to grow their own produce,” said Concannon. “The partnership between schools, community, and government is essential to building healthy dietary behaviors for our nation’s next generation.”

Working With Local Growers

As part of USDA’s Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food Initiative, members from the USDA Farm to School Team are making plans to visit the Riverside Unified School District. During their visit, the team will work with local growers, local and state authorities, school districts, and community partners to learn about Riverside’s farm to school efforts, including how the activities first began, the relationship between growers and the school district, what obstacles exist or were faced along the way, and the effects the activities have had on the school and the community.

According to information on the Farm To School website, www.farmtoschool.org, 44 states now have operational programs with an estimated 2,111 Farm To School programs in the U.S. About 8,944 schools are currently involved in the program.

Child Nutrition Act

Concannon also emphasized the importance of renewing the Child Nutrition Act. The Obama Administration has proposed an investment of an additional $10 billion over 10 years starting in 2011 that will allow for the improvement of the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs, increase the number of kids participating, and ensure schools have the resources they need to make program changes, including training for school food service workers and upgraded kitchen equipment. This investment also will allow additional fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and low-fat and fat-free dairy products to be served in school cafeterias.

For more information on nutrition pro-grams, go to www.fns.usda.gov.