1. School Food and Farm to School

2. How School Nutrition Works - Income
¨ Funding
¤ Federal 52%
¤ Students 45%
¤ Local 1%
¤ State 0.01%
¨ Federal
¤ Free $2.89
¤ Reduced $2.49

3. How School Nutrition Works - Output
¨ Labor 50%
¨ Food 42%
¨ Supplies 3%
¨ Equipment 3%
¨ Other 2%
Child Nutrition Programs
Cover all of Costs.

4. Dr. Thelma de Garmo Bryan
¨ Professor of Institutional Management at Teacher’s
College, Columbia University. WWI Dietitian who
say firsthand the physical condition of troops in the
war.
Pioneers in School Food
Emma Smedley
Ellen RichardsVolunteers
Extension Service

5. “School lunch is a source of nourishing food which
helps combat malnutrition and hunger and helps
maintain the health and vigor essential to the success of
the teaching program; school lunch is the center for the
teaching of proper food selection and good health
habits; school lunch provides an opportunity for
correlating classroom teaching with interests
and experiences of children which center around food;
and school lunch is a way of engaging the
community in the work of the school and of providing
some nutrition education to parents through this outlet.”

6. Child Nutrition Programs:
Historical Perspective
“The nation has sustained 155,000 casualties in the war
because of the malnutrition in its young men, and these
were the healthier men as fully one-third were rejected
and could not even enter the armed services because of
malnutrition.”
General Lewis B. Hershey,
Director of the Selective
Service, testified before
Congress in 1945

7. Child Nutrition Programs
Historical Perspective
“Today as I sign the National School Lunch Act, I feel
that Congress has acted with great wisdom in providing
the basis for strengthening the nation through
better nutrition for our school children…I hope that
all state and local authorities will cooperate fully…in
establishing the cooperative school lunch in every
possible community.”
President Harry S. Truman signs
the National School Lunch Act
into law on June 4, 1946

8. Child Nutrition Programs
Historical Perspective – 1950-70s
Ø Program thrives through state and federal support
Ø “Right thing to do for children”
Ø Educators/administrators viewed CN program as part of
total education program
Ø Nutrition education was a
component of state curricula
Ø Food was simple and from scratch
Ø “Hungry children can’t learn.”
Ø Additional funds made available to “severe need” schools
Ø Program perceived as “Sacred Cow”

9. Child Nutrition Programs
Historical Perspective – 1980s
Ø “Sacred Cow” is slaughtered; program is
devastated by $1.8 billion federal budget cut
Ø Proposal to shift responsibility to states and
charities
Ø Districts struggle to keep program operational
Ø Schools begin to sell supplemental items
Ø A la Carte service begins; offers relief from
budget cuts; schools realize food sales = easy funds
Ø 1987 – federal program funds restored…

10. Child Nutrition Programs
Historical Perspective – 1990-2000
Ø A la Carte program thrives
Ø CN Program must rely on
revenues from the sale of
non-nutritious foods and
beverages to students to
operate
Ø Schools make money selling foods and
beverages to students
Ø Students develop appetite
for A la Carte foods
Ø State and local funding re-directed

11. Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act 2010
¨ First revision to the school lunch meal pattern in over
30 years.
¨ Set minimum and maximum calorie levels and
portions sizes for bread and protein based on age/
grade groups.
¨ Increase the amount of fruits and vegetables offered
based on age/grade groups.
¤ Require minimums on vegetable subgroups
n Dark green, deep orange/yellow or legumes.

12. Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act 2010
q Set requirements on
Saturated Fat, Trans Fat
and Sodium
¨ 50% of grains must be
whole grain
¨ Milk must be low fat

13. Current Trends in Child Nutrition:
We’ve come full circle.
¨ Prevention of
Childhood Obesity
¨ Promoting
appropriate growth
and health
¨ Aid schools in meeting
academic goals
¨ Increase availability
of fruits and
vegetables

14. How does Farm to School fit in?
¨ According to NCDA
¤ 85 of 110 school districts in
NC participate in some
form of Farm to School
Program
¨ Produce Vendors
¤ Include bid language that
favors vendors that can
supply local produce.
¤ Working to get local items
from packers and farmers.

15. What are schools currently doing?
¨ Purchase items direct
from farmers or farmer’s
Co-ops
¨ Farm Tours, Nutrition
Education, School
Gardens, etc.
¤ Collaborations with ASAP

16. Barriers to Sourcing Local
¨ GAP/HACCP Certification (Sanitation/Safety)
¨ Deliveries
¨ Packing and Quantities
¨ Cost Effectiveness
n Child Nutrition programs are not provided much local or
state funding in NC
n Cannot afford to pay more for produce

17. Barriers to Sourcing Local
¨ School Perspective
¤ Will the kids eat it?
¤ Difficult to determine who to buy from
¤ Difficult to know what is in season and who to
contact
¤ Difficult to determine what to do if items are not
available or substandard
¤ Record keeping
n Purchase orders, invoices, and accounts payable

18. Farm to School Makes Connections
¨ Between CNDs, Farmers and Distributors
¨ Between classroom and cafeteria
¨ Between children and fresh local fruits and
vegetables.

19. ¨ Local food in schools
¨ Farm field trips
¨ School gardens
¨ Local food cooking
www.growing-minds.org

20. Farm to
School =
Exploring
food and
farms
through
hands-on
experiences.

21. Children Will Eat What They Cook and Grow
Early
introduction to
fresh, healthy
foods will have
an important
impact as
children begin
making their
own food
choices.

23. Local Food for Meals, Snacks, Events
¨ Training and workshops
for farmers on selling to
school systems
¨ Resources for Child
Nutrition Directors and
Cafeteria Managers
¨ Get Local Materials
¨ Promotional Materials

24. School Gardens
¨ Seeds and Gift Cards
¨ Weekly Garden
Newsletter for
Educators
¨ Workshops and
Trainings
¨ Resources and Lessons
¨ Children’s Literature

28. Farmer Classroom Visits and Field Trips
¨ Assistance connecting
with farmers
¨ Curriculum connections
¨ Training and resources
for farmers and
teachers
¨ The Hayride
¨ Mini-grants

29. Farm to School Tastings
A Farm to School taste test is an event that offers
students small samples of local foods, usually fresh
fruits and vegetables. Anyone can organize a Farm to
School taste test: teachers, school administration, a
chef, a parent, food service staff, a school nurse,
students, etc.

30. Local Food Cooking in the Classroom
¨ Stipends for food
¨ Assistance sourcing
local
¨ Workshops and
Trainings
¨ Recipes, lessons, and
stickers
¨ Cooking equipment
¨ Growing Minds’ Best
Practices Guide

31. Local food has a
face, a connection, and a story

32. Farm to School Education Project
Jackson County

33. Results from K-2 CVS survey, 2012
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Asks more often to visit a farm
Asks to visit a Farmers Market
Asks more often to eat vegetables
Asks more often to eat fruits
Wants to help more with your garden
Is more interested in where food is grown
Wants to start a garden
Is more likely to try new FRUITS
Is more likely to try new VEGETABLES
Wants to help cook more often
Is more likely to try new FOODS
Parents' Ratings of How Project Impacted Their Child

34. Parent Comments
“My son was so excited
about cooking and eating
new things in class. Since
then he tries more types of
food.”
“My non-vegetable
eating child came home
saying he loved kale!”
“He tried new things
that without having
tasted them at school
he probably wouldn't
have had the
opportunity.”
“My daughter enjoyed these
projects and bragged about
eating fresh veggies at the
farm. She tried more raw
veggies at home after the farm
trip.”
“I think it’s great for children to
learn where food comes from,
especially since this county
once produced a large number
of crops and families grew their
own food.”

35. What can YOU do?
Ø Be accurately informed about the issue.
Ø Encourage your decision-makers to support efforts to
restore state and local funds to the Child Nutrition
Program as a public health measure.
Ø Continue to advocate for a healthy school nutrition
environment.
Ø Support your local Farm to School programs.

36. Anna Littman
Appalachian Sustainable
Agriculture Project
306 W. Haywood St.,
Asheville, 28801
(828) 236-1282
anna@asapconnections.org
www.appalachiangrown.org
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