You’re invited to the PA Farm to School Network’s (PFSN) March virtual open house to learn more about connecting schools and Early Care and Education programs (ECEs) with local farmers to foster a meaningful relationship with their local food systems.

At the last open house, we discussed local food purchasing incentive programs and some upcoming opportunities for schools and ECE programs interested in purchasing local food to serve in school snacks and meals. For many schools and ECE programs, the first step to serving local food is making a connection to a farmer, grower, or local food distributor. 

In addition to serving local food in school meals, connecting children with local farmers and growers can strengthen their relationship with healthy local foods, and deepen their appreciation for where their food comes from. An example of working with a farmer could include purchasing food from their farm and promoting their products and farm when serving their food in school meals or snacks. Farmers could also visit a classroom or cafeteria and give a short presentation about their farm or host kids on a field trip to their farm. There are lots of ways to help connect students with food and agriculture by partnering with local farmers!

During the March open house on Thursday, March 21st from 3 – 4:30 PM EST, we will discuss how to build connections between schools and ECE programs, and local farmers. Participants will also hear about some resources available, including: 

• The Pasa Sustainable Agriculture We will hear from Victoria Gonzales, Manager of the Foodshed Mapping Project: A collaborative project between Pasa Sustainable Agriculture, the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture and PA Preferred, Feeding Pennsylvania, the Pittsburgh Food Policy Council, and the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau, as well as many others to map Pennsylvania farms and food businesses in a shared, searchable digital database to facilitate new opportunities for connections with markets, institutions, wholesalers, and consumers to support a thriving and resilient food system in the Commonwealth.
• Regional Food Hubs: Katie Barr, Outreach Specialist for The Common Market, and Erica Lewis, Food Service Manager at The Caring Center in Philadelphia will share how regional food hubs and distributors like The Common Market can help connect schools and ECEs with farmers to increase local food purchasing and the use of local foods in meals, snacks, and taste tests. 
• The PA Beef to PA Schools Program: Nichole Hockenberry, Executive Director of The PA Beef Council will share how their program –  PA Beef to PA Schools – works to connect schools and their food service professionals to cattle producers to ‘Beef-up’ their school lunches. The program provides the opportunity to place quality protein on the lunch tray for students to enjoy while connecting them to their local ag community.

Participants will have the opportunity to learn how other farm to school practitioners connect with farmers and share their own experiences and ideas. There will also be time for networking and small group discussions where we can consider why connecting with farmers is so important and share ideas and inspiration. 

Register to attend the virtual open house, held over Zoom here!

Additional Resources: 

• PA Harvest of the Month materials highlights monthly featured foods to utilize in your meals and taste tests.
• Check out this PA Farm to School Success Story to learn how this farmer connected with her local school district to serve meat and produce in school lunches.
• PA Ag Literacy Week is a great example of a way to connect children with farmers in the classroom. Register next year to invite a volunteer working in the agricultural community to come read to your class. 
• Take your students on a farm tour! Farm tours are a great opportunity for students to learn more about local agriculture. If going to a farm isn’t an option, check out our virtual farm tour series to bring the farm to your school, site, or home!