Ohio Farm to School
About Ohio Farm to School
Ohio Farm to School (F2S) aims to provide students of all ages with access to fresh, locally grown or raised food, and to educate them about many aspects of agriculture and their community. F2S activities and initiatives can include nutrition education in classrooms, farmer visits and sampling, signage promoting local foods, serving local foods in the cafeteria, school gardens, and so much more!
Research shows that Farm to School Works
Benefits of F2S include:
- Farm to School Works to Stimulate Local and Regional Economies
- Increases students’ health, nutrition, and academic performance
- Helps healthy habits take root early
Want to join the F2S Conversation?
Ohio Farm to School Advisory and State Network meetings are a great way to connect with organizations, state agencies, and schools participating in Farm to School efforts throughout Ohio. All 2023 meetings are on Thursdays from 9:30 am–noon. Meetings will be held virtually until further notice. State-level updates will take place at 9:30-11, with region-specific discussions 11-noon. For more information on Ohio Farm to School, visit Ohio State University Extension’s website and Facebook page.
ODA’s Farm to School Grant
In 2020, the Ohio Department of Agriculture received a USDA Farm to School grant to expand the current statewide Ohio Farm to School Network and to provide a framework for cohesive communication and coordination among farm to school programs across the state.
In partnership with the Ohio Department of Education and Ohio State University Extension, the project will aid food service directors in procuring local food, engage more farmers in growing and selling produce to schools, and strengthen communication to share resources with other entities across the state.
The grant identified 5 key objectives:
Objective 1 – Strengthen the existing Farm to School State Network by increasing participation from all stakeholder groups.
Objective 2 – Create a statewide strategic marketing campaign for Farm to Child Nutrition Programs (CNP) utilizing the input of the network.
Objective 3 – Raise awareness and promote locally grown food and nutrition to schools and all Ohioans.
Objective 4 – Provide farmers with necessary information to market their products to local schools.
Objective 5 – Provide food service directors with the necessary information to procure local produce for their schools.
New Video: Local Foods Procurement
ODA’s grant is scheduled to end June 2022, but will likely be extended through 2023 due to the pandemic.
Child Nutrition Programs can use the
On the Menu Logo
If your child nutrition program has a menu item that uses one Ohio Proud item we welcome you to be part of Ohio Proud on the Menu. Let us know about your use of Ohio Proud foods and the Ohio Proud on the Menu logo will be available to your organization for promotional purposes. Your school or organization will also be listed on the Ohio Department of Agriculture’s Ohio Proud Farm to School webpage as an Ohio Proud on the Menu child nutrition program.
Current On the Menu Schools
Amherst Exempted Village Schools
Barberton City Schools
Bedford City School District
Bishop Hartley High School
Bloomfield-Mespo Local School District
Bridgewater Learning Center
Brookfield Local Schools
Campbell City Schools
CCCTC
Cincinnati Public Schools
Clyde-Green Springs EVSD
Crestview Local School District
Cuyahoga Falls City School District
Cuyahoga Heights Schools
East Palestine City School
Eastland-Fairfield Career & Technical Schools
Eastwood Local Schools
Edison Local School District
Fairview Park City Schools
Four County Career Center
Garaway Local Schools
Girard City School District
Highland Local School District
Knox County Career Center
LaBrae Local School District
Leetonia Schools
Lincolnview Local Schools
Little Miami Local Schools
Louisville City School District
Mahoning County Career and Technical Center and Valley Stem
Maplewood Local School District
Mentor Exempted Village School
Miami Trace Local Schools
Noble Local School District
Parma City School District
Perry Local Schools
Pettisville Local Schools
Plain Local Schools
Poland Local Schools
River Valley Local Schools
Solon City Schools
South Range Schools
Streetsboro Local Schools
TCBDD Fairhaven School
Trotwood-Madison City School District
United Local School District
Wellington Exempted Village School District
West Clermont Local School District
Monthly Newsletter
Sign up for Ohio’s F2S Monthly Newsletter for stories from schools and students on Farm to School initiatives across the state, events, and learning opportunities. Simply email OhioProud@agri.ohio.gov and let us know you want added to the mailing list! Explore previous issues of the newsletter below.
Resources
Looking for the most updated resources in Farm to School? Whether you’re a student, Food Service Director or Ohio Producer… we’ve got you covered!
Students
Stay tuned as student resources become available!
Producers
Stay tuned as more information becomes available for Ohio producers
Additional Farm to School Resources
National Farm to School Network
Bringing the Farm to School: A Training Program for Agricultural Producers
2022 Ohio Farm to School Regional Team Leads
One of the main objectives of ODA’s 2020 Farm to School Grant was to strengthen Ohio’s existing network framework, by increasing participation from all stakeholder groups. The grant team split the state into eight regions and designated a lead representative for each area. The eight regions include: Northwest (NW), North Central (NC), Northeast (NE), West Central (WC), Central (C), East Central (EC), Southwest (SW), and Southeast (SE). These regional team leads provide an opportunity to communicate and better share resources within their geographic area.
Contact Us
Want to see your own Farm to School success story highlighted by the Farm to School Network and beyond? Share your story with us here!
The Farm to School page is run in cooperation with the Ohio Department of Agriculture’s Ohio Proud Program, Ohio Department of Education, and The Ohio State University Extension Farm to School Program.
