March 2018
NEW! TDA Grant Opportunity to Expand Farm Fresh Fridays in Schools!

T he Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) is now accepting applications for the
Expanding the 3E's Nutrition Education Grant .
The grant program is open to Texas public schools and funds may be used to enhance Farm Fresh Friday activities,
including school gardens, taste testing, farmer visits, and more! The maximum award is $10,000 per school or $50,000 per district. Applications must be received by
March 21, 2018.

TDA has created an outreach plan that partner organizations can use to include messaging about the grant in their communications to stakeholders. This toolkit includes text for newsletters and social media, as well as talking points for use when connecting directly with school administrators.
Additional Farm Fresh resources and spotlight stories are available at SquareMeals.org/TexasFarmFresh


Farm to Child Care Spotlight

The Establishing the 3E's program incentivizes the creation of new nutrition programs in any child care institution or community organization. This program is geared toward 3-5 year old children and is a competitive grant.
Past grantees have received funds that improve the quality of menu offerings, increase physical activity, and introduce students to farm to child care activities such as garden based learning and taste testing local foods.
Find success stories from past participants on SquareMeals.org .


Farm to Summer Spotlight
New! Farm to Summer Online Course Now Available

TDA is excited to announce that the Farm to Summer online course is now available! This training is intended for Summer Meal Program team members and others who are interested in learning more about bringing farm to summer activities to summer meal sites. This is one of several online training courses TDA has developed for the Farm Fresh Initiative.

Sign up to Participate in the SFSP Farm Fresh Challenge

TDA is bringing the Farm Fresh Challenge to the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP). Contracting entities (CE) statewide will be able to participate during the summer challenge period from June 11 through 22, 2018.

SFSP CEs earn Farm Fresh Challenge recognition for taking steps to connect participants to local foods and education. For more information about the challenge for Summer Meal Programs visit Squaremeals.org/FarmFreshChallengeSFSP .

If you are a partner organization and interested in promoting the Farm Fresh Challenge for SFSP, TDA has provided an outreach toolkit   to assist you. This toolkit includes text that can be used in newsletters and social media posts, as well as talking points for use when connecting with school administrators.

Contact TDA
Emilee Case
Coordinator for Farm Fresh Projects

Beatrice Watson
Farm Fresh Specialist

Email us or call
 (877) TEX-MEAL
Connect with Others
Texas Statewide Network
This LinkedIn Group is an online network connecting schools, child and adult care centers, producers, support organizations and community members with important information about expanding local food efforts in Texas.
 
Join Today!

Texas Farm Fresh Network
Use this tool to connect with Texas food companies that currently sell or are interested in selling to schools, child care centers and summer meal programs. Company listings include contact information, product availability and distribution radius.
Funding Opportunities
Financial support from organizations may help establish or advance local Farm Fresh initiatives.
 
Go here  for a list of opportunities from TDA, USDA and other organizations.






TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
COMMISSIONER SID MILLER


P.O. Box 12847 | Austin, Texas 78711
Toll free: (877) TEX-MEAL | For the hearing impaired: (800) 735-2989 (TTY) 


This product was funded by USDA. This institution is an equal opportunity provider.
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