Put Local On Your Tray Program
This program works closely with state agencies and non-profit partners to help schools source, serve, and celebrate locally grown food. Put Local on Your Tray Program helps school food directors find and connect with local farmers, provide recipes and ideas for serving local food in the cafeteria, and offer fun and exciting educational materials to help promote farming to schools within the school community. There is a focus on strategies to increase local food procurement, build farmer and school food director business relationships, and create high-quality promotional materials. Each year, the program invites school districts to pledge to serve locals; our cohort of districts receives lots of support and one-on-one coaching to bring locals into the school cafeteria. This program also provides one-on-one technical assistance to early childhood daycare centers and providers as they incorporate gardens and local food-tasting activities in their programs.