January 2008
As the movement builds to bring local fresh ingredients to schools across the country, this newsletter highlights pivotal policies, news, publications, and events with this month’s focus on the South Regional Lead Agency. Please contact us if you have any comments or suggestions.
In This Issue
- Spotlight on South Regional Lead Agency
- Profile of Melanie Payne: Where the Fryer Stands Alone
- "Bill aims to put local foods on school lunch menus " by Jennifer Langston
- "Chef leads effort to serve Oregon food to students" by Leslie Cole
- "Agriculture summit plants a seed for future economic growth" by Heidi Cenac
Has anyone had success in adding agricultural knowledge to their state curricular standards? Join the Forum discussion now!
Policy
Davis Voters Tax Themselves for Farm to School Programs
Davis Joint Unified School District voters in California approved a parcel tax that includes $60,000 to $80,000 annually for fresh farm produce for school lunches. The district's board included the farm to school funding in the ballot measure after polls indicated voters' willingness to pay new taxes to improve school meals. Trustees have approved a memorandum of understanding with the Davis Farm to School Connection to work together toward a goal of purchasing 60 percent of school lunch produce from local growers. The parcel tax will provide a sustainable source of funding to help reach that goal. Read the MOU.
Publications
Fresh from the Farm: Using Local Foods in Afterschool and Summer Nutrition Programs Alexis Bylander and Crystal FitzSimons.
This guide outlines strategies and approaches for accessing local products such as working with an organization that is already using local produce, collaborating with the area food service director or operating the Farm to School program independently. (PDF)
Upcoming Event
Georgia Organics 11th Annual Conference
February 28 - March 1, 2008
Helpful Links
Spotlight Story
New North Florida Cooperative Association
As one of the eight regional lead agencies for the National Farm to School Network, the New North Florida Cooperative Association Inc. (NNFC) is the hub for farm to school activities in the Southern region. In this role, NNFC supports the National Network in areas of policy, information, media, and networking opportunities, as well as training and technical assistance for individuals working on farm to school issues. Although they are based in Florida, their regional responsibilities cover Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama.
Glyen Holmes is the South Regional Lead Agency Coordinator. Originally from Mississippi, Glyen has worked in small-scale agriculture most of his life. He received a Bachelor of Science in Agronomy from Alcorn State University (MS), and worked with the USDA for 18 years before entering the private sector as Executive Director of the NNFC. He has over 20 years of experience working closely with small-scale farmers in market development and production and value-added agriculture in the Southeast. Read More.
Featured Profile
Where the Fryer Stands Alone
Interview with melanie payne by debra eschmeyer
How many school food service directors can say that they have students that have never been served fried foods at school? Whether known for turning off the fryers in 1992 or for serving fresh shrimp on a school lunch menu, Melanie Payne is a school food service director with a mission.
Melanie has been the food service director at Opelika City Schools in Alabama for 22 years. She also raises 100 dairy goats with her husband, selling the cheese to farmers’ markets and chefs, and plans to sell milk by the end of the year. Here’s a glimpse into the dining experience of kids eating at Melanie’s cafeterias. Read More.
This Month's News
Bill aims to put local foods on school lunch menus
BY Jennifer Langston. Seattle Post-Intelligencer.
Legislation to be proposed in Olympia next week could catapult Washington to the forefront of national efforts to get more farm-fresh, locally grown food into lunches at schools and at other institutions. It borrows from piecemeal efforts in other states, but would go further. Read the entire article.
Chef leads effort to serve Oregon food to students
by Leslie Cole, The Oregonian.
The push to get more nutritious, Oregon-grown foods into school lunchrooms got some serious muscle behind it last week when longtime Wildwood executive chef Cory Schreiber started his new job: farm-to-school program coordinator for the Oregon Department of Agriculture. Read the entire article.
Agriculture summit plants a seed for future economic growth
Heidi Cenac, Anderson Independent-Mail News.
Sustainable agriculture involves three pillars: farming in a way that preserves the land for future generations, creating systems and practices that make farming economically feasible, and preserving the viability of rural communities. James Horne of the Kerr Center told those in attendance about creating farm-to-school programs that allow local farmers to provide food to surrounding schools. Read the entire article.
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