USDA awards New York grant funding to grow its farm-to-school program

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has awarded the state a $110,000 Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) grant to grow its farm-to-school program.

The money will support producer-readiness trainings that will help New York’s farmers access the farm-to-school market, and provide the tools, resources, and connections needed to sell their farm products to schools across the state.

“Farm-to-school programs are key to our agency’s goal of connecting more New York farmers with new markets and ensuring that more New Yorkers have access to fresh, local, nutritious foods,” New York State Agriculture Commissioner Richard Ball said in a release. “I’m proud that we have been selected to receive this prestigious USDA grant so that we can help more producers get their products to kids who need them most.”

The project will deliver the USDA farm-to-school producer training, targeting 50 farmers across the state.

The training curriculum offers producers a program that involves “experiential, peer-led, and action-oriented learning,” per the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets. The program aims to serve New York’s “diverse and underserved” agricultural communities while strengthening regional partnerships and establishing connections with New York farmers.

The training provides interested agriculture producers with the tools to access school markets and to help them develop plans to meet their goals. Training will also provide a pathway for New York farmers and producers to understand how collaborative efforts between school districts and farmers generate new partnerships, revenue streams and local, sustainable food systems.

Additionally, the project offers a pathway for farmers to understand how collaborative efforts between schools and producers generate not only partnerships and new revenue streams, but also the opportunity to create sustainable food systems and strong communities. Connecting the dots between farmers and schools supports local procurement efforts in USDA Child Nutrition Programs, addresses barriers identified by schools working to procure local and regionally produced food, and equips farmers with a pathway to sell to new markets.

The department will administer the project, while American Farmland Trust and Cornell University will manage the training.