Members of the Pennsylvania Farm to School Network (PFSN) spent the past year putting our strategic plan and priorities into action and welcoming many new members! The Leadership Team and members represent a variety of sectors across the food system and counties. See our network’s representation below:

PFSN members are in 61 out of the 67 PA counties and are represented in a variety of sectors!

Active members contributed their thoughts and time during working group meetings and through their daily farm to school (FTS) activities in various ways. Here are just some of the highlights:

Professional development and technical assistance: FTS practitioners including school food service directors, educators, farmers/producers, Early Care and Education (ECE) site operators and community partners participated in a variety of professional development workshops held across the state including:

• The PA Farm to School Institute launched at the end of June with a two-day retreat at Heritage Creek Farm, bringing together over 50 FTS stakeholders from across the state, offering a wide array of training opportunities through specialized workshops, panel discussions and large presentations. Learn more about the Institute in this blog post.
• Culinary Training workshops hosted by the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) and Project PA (Penn State) provided training to school and ECE nutrition professionals focusing on handling and preparing Pennsylvania Harvest of the Month (PA HOM) items.
• The second PA Farm to Child Nutrition Summit was coordinated by the Pennsylvania Department of Education and Penn State University (Project PA) with the support of the Pennsylvania Farm to School Network. More than 100 educators, Child Nutrition Program operators and other farm to school partners gathered at Chatham University’s Eden Hall Campus for this event.
• PA Educator’s Agriculture Institute hosted by the PA Friends of Agriculture Foundation – Teachers attended educational tours and participated in hands-on agricultural-focused classroom lessons. Learn what it was like in this blog post.

Resources, funding and celebrating successes: Agencies and organizations represented by members of the PFSN provided resources, opportunities and inspiring stories to help practitioners succeed in implementing their farm to school activities:

• PDE and Project PA’s Pennsylvania Harvest of the Month Program (PA HOM) continue to provide participants with local, healthy products while supporting Pennsylvania farmers and producers by promoting a local agricultural product each month through schools, child and adult care centers/day care homes, and summer feeding sites. PA HOM In the Kitchen videos were released in 2024, each one offering a short chef’s presentation about how to procure, select, handle, and prepare one PA HOM item for use in the Child Nutrition Programs
• In March, students across the state had the opportunity to hear from real farmers and local agriculture professionals during Agriculture Literacy Week hosted by the PA Friends of Agriculture Foundation.
• In October, communities across PA participated in National Farm to School Month and PA Preferred Days. Schools, ECE sites, farmers, and community members celebrated the benefits of bringing fresh produce to kids in a variety of fun and creative ways while also providing hands-on learning opportunities about food and agriculture.
• Sixteen FTS programs shared their success stories in 2024, including 8 programs that shared stories for the National FTS Month Storytelling Contest. Thank you to all for highlighting your programs and inspiring others to continue their farm to school efforts in Pennsylvania.
• The Pennsylvania Friends of Agriculture Foundation awarded Kelly Damore, a fourth and fifth grade teacher from St. James School in Erie County, 2024 Teacher of the Year during the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau’s Annual Meeting in November. Kelley Damore’s exemplary commitment to integrating agricultural education into her classroom earned her this recognition.

Policy advocacy for sustained FTS programming:

• PFSN active members and the Policy Working Group worked to introduce the Keystone Fresh Act, Pennsylvania’s Local Food Procurement Incentive (LFPI), which passed out of the Pennsylvania House on July 1, 2024, with bipartisan support! Now the bill could be considered by the PA Senate Education Committee. Take action by asking your State Senator to support The Keystone Fresh Act.
• The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture’s Farm to School Grant Program, one of many initiatives in the PA Farm Bill, continues to provide funding for schools to improve access to healthy, local foods and increase agriculture education opportunities for pre-kindergarten through eighth grade. See the recently released list of grantees!
• JOIN US TO CELEBRATE! This year, the PFSN hosted quarterly virtual open house events to provide opportunities for people like you to meet other PA Farm to School Network members and learn how to advance farm to school efforts in your own community through sharing your story, connecting schools and early care and education (ECE) sites to farmers and National Farm to School Month. The final virtual open house is on Thursday, December 12th from 3-4:30 pm. Register to learn how farmers can bring their produce to local schools and ECE sites.

We are excited about the progress made in 2024 and look forward to good things to come in 2025. Thank you to our partners and those implementing and supporting farm to school activities throughout the commonwealth! Together, we can ensure that every child in Pennsylvania is meaningfully connected to and nourished by thriving and resilient community food systems.