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Farm to Institution
By Patrice Powers-Barker, Ohio State University Extension,
Lucas County
The Truth Contributor
Farm to Institution is the term used to describe the
opportunity for urban and rural farmers, ranchers and food
businesses to meet the needs of tens of millions of
Americans who eat their meals outside of the home every day
at schools, colleges, work and hospitals.
Another term is Farm to Food Service and the focus on the
connection between the food origins and where it is served
offers the opportunity to deliberately make choices about
healthy food environments and healthy food choices.
One very important food service provider across the nation
for our children in at school where they might be eating
breakfast, lunch or snacks. October is the celebration for
National Farm to School Month. Farm to School programs can
be at any educational institution in Ohio from
pre-kindergarten through college.
This article will focus on schools but imagine how this
concept can also be utilized at other institutions such as
work sites, hospitals or places of worship. Let’s all learn
about the food from the farm and make some healthier choices
about what we put on our plates.
What is Farm to School? Although there is an emphasis of
serving local food like fruits and vegetables, meat and milk
and grains on the school menu, that is one of three parts of
a Farm to School Program.
In addition to serving local food, two other aspects of Farm
to School Programs are School Gardens and Education about
food. According to a 2011-2012 Farm to School survey, the
top five local foods served in Ohio schools were apples,
tomatoes, lettuce, peppers and milk. The following foods
were also commonly served: cucumbers, watermelon, bread
products, cantaloupe and carrots.
Don’t these foods sound tasty for lunch or snack time or a
salad bar in the cafeteria?
School Gardens provide hands-on learning about plant science
and nutrition. Students learn about what grows in Ohio and
parents and community members have the opportunity for
volunteering at the garden.
What is the value of a Farm to School program? Some of the
advantages of a Farm to School program are improved child
nutrition, the support of local economies and helping
children learn about the origins of food. Because food is
such an important as well as broad topic, lessons on food
can align with classroom lessons on math, science, health,
nutrition, language arts and social studies.
In addition to education for the students, Farm to School
educational programs can also meet the needs in the local
community.
Question: what is local food? What does it mean to you?
There is no one definition of local food for schools, other
institutions or even personal households. The example of
local foods as part of the Farm to School Program might be
as close as the school garden on the school grounds or it
might be farther away in a neighboring state.
The definition of “local” for Farm to School is defined by
the school district. One common ways that “local” food is
described includes a distance of miles between where the
food is grown or produced and where it’s served like a 50
mile radius, a 100 mile radius or 200 mile radius.
Other descriptions include food produced within a day’s
drive or food produced within the state. There’s a local
food campaign called Ohio Proud, look for products with this
label at the grocery store. Local food might also be food
produced within the state and neighboring states.
Just like a school decides their own definition, these
different examples of “local” are also common at grocery
stores or restaurants. Go ahead and ask the question the
next time you are purchasing food, “How does your
institution define local?”
Following Farm to School Month in October is Ohio State
University Extension’s Live Smart Ohio Month in November.
Not only should children be eating healthy and learning
topics of healthy finances and relationships, adults should
also be practicing smart habits in all those areas. A new
website will be unrolled in November at
http://go.osu.edu/livesmartohio . Right now that
website address currently hosts the Family Consumer Science
programs’ “Eat, Save, and Be Healthy” blog but it will be
beautifully updated in November!
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