October is Farm to School Month!

Every day is a great day to celebrate farm-to-school, especially during the abundant fall harvest season!

Join MEFTI, the National Farm to School Network, and thousands of schools, early care and education sites, farms, communities and organizations across the country as we celebrate food education, school gardens and lunch trays filled with healthy, local ingredients. Check out the National Farm to School website to explore ways to get involved in the farm-to-school movement.

The Results Are In:

2023 National Farm to School Census

The Farm to School Census (Census) is an online survey that collects information every four years about farm to school activities nationwide.

Check out the interactive maps on the USDA website to see key highlights from the 2023 Farm to School Census. Want to know more about how farm to school is being cultivated in your State? Select a State or School Food Authority (SFA) using the search tools on the site to dig deeper into what is going on in your community. You can also learn more about the Census data and how the USDA gathered it.

According to the Census, 73% of schools in Maine are serving local food!

USDA Reinvests in Local Food for Schools

On October 1, the USDA announced a major reinvestment of $500 million to help school meal programs purchase more local foods. For the first time, an additional $200 million is being directed to child care facilities, which face similar hurdles as schools in sourcing nutritious, local food.

This builds on the USDA’s highly successful Local Food for Schools Cooperative Agreement Program (LFS), which has strengthened the connection between local producers and their communities by creating new markets, jobs, and economic opportunities. Importantly, this federal initiative complements Maine’s own Local Food Fund, making it easier than ever for schools to access local food.

Ongoing investment in local food purchasing empowers producers to scale up, invest in infrastructure, and deepen relationships that fortify resilient regional food systems—all while delivering healthy, fresh products to students.

Now that's cause for celebration! Read all about this program and the other USDA food system investments in the press release below.

Full Plates Full Potential School Meals Grants are Open

The School Meals Grant supports Maine School Nutrition Programs in increasing participation in and access to meals throughout the school day. Funds are available to support districts operating the School Breakfast Program and/or the National School Lunch Program.

Grants range from $500 - $10,000.

Apply now to:

• Repair, upgrade, or purchase new kitchen equipment
• Purchase carts, pin pads, and supplies to start or expand a Breakfast After the Bell program
• Purchase supplies to implement Harvest of the Month taste tests
• Pay for costs associated with professional development training opportunities (e.g., cost of trainings, hiring subs)
• Pay for staff time and resources needed for additional trainings on the new nutrition standards
• Pay for temporary staffing needs to try out new student engagement strategies
• Pay for temporary staffing and food costs to do recipe development
• Design and print nutrition education materials to share with students and families
• And more!

Application Deadline: October 28, 2024

Take the Local Pledge with Harvesting Good

Harvesting Good is known for its delicious broccoli and other vegetables sourced from small and mid-sized family farms. These vegetables are flash-frozen at peak freshness and served at K-12 schools, universities, healthcare facilities, and senior centers throughout the Northeast.

Harvesting Good invites schools to join their local pledge campaign.

This is your chance to bring a piece of Maine’s pride—our delicious, nutritious, and locally grown Harvesting Good broccoli—right to your cafeteria tables. And it’s not just about the broccoli (though let’s be honest, it’s a pretty great part). It’s about teaching our kids the value of eating local, supporting our hardworking farmers, and taking a real bite out of food insecurity.

Learn more and take the pledge on their website.

2024 Maine Marinara Now in Stock at Native Maine

Native Maine code for Maine Marinara is SAMA20L - Marinara, Maine 20 pounds.

Place your order today!

Maine School Garden Network Annual Meeting 2024:

Harvest Homecoming

Join MSGN on Friday, November 8th at the MOFGA's Educational Center (location of the Common Ground Fair) for an afternoon and evening filled with insightful workshops, networking, MSGN's Annual Report and a potluck meal! This is a no cost event, please register so we know you are coming!

MAITC's annual meeting will be held Wednesday, October 30th at the Maine State Grange in Augusta.

Join in for a night celebrating the promotion of agricultural literacy across our state! Meet and hear from grant winners, find out the winner of our Teacher of the Year award, and enjoy a delicious Grange dinner complete with an amazing assortment of pies!

RSVP to maitc@maine.gov 

Final Call for F2iSummit Proposals!

Farm to Institution New England (FINE) invites you to help create the 2025 Northeast Farm to Institution Summit! Submit your proposal(s) to organize a 2 hour strategy session, 1 hour session, or field trip at this extraordinary event in Portland, Maine in April 2025. We also welcome other creative ideas and suggestions via this proposal (e.g. speaker suggestions, side meetings to consider, topics you hope are addressed, and arts to integrate).

Deadline: November 1, 2024.

Have questions? We’re here to help! Contact Tania: tania@farmtoinstitution.org.

Resilient Food System Infrastructure (RFSI) Equipment-Only Grant Application Deadline October 28

Funding will be awarded in the range of $10,000-$100,000 for special purpose equipment to be purchased by eligible Maine food and beverage entities. Funds will support middle of the supply chain equipment investments for the aggregation, processing, manufacturing, storing, transporting, wholesaling, and distribution of Maine-produced food and beverage products. Non-equipment expenses, such as personnel, facility updates, and non-equipment costs, are not eligible for this funding opportunity. Applicants are not required to provide a matching contribution.

Grants will be awarded in five food and beverage product categories:

1.      Foods and beverages inclusive of 51% or more Maine-grown and harvested specialty crops.

2.      Foods and beverages inclusive of 51% or more Maine dairy or eggs. 

3.      Food and beverages inclusive of 51% or more Maine grains. 

4.      Foods and beverages inclusive of 51% or more Maine-farmed aquaculture.

5.      Maine-produced specialty food and beverage products containing one or more Maine-grown and harvested ingredients. 

Learn more and apply through the DACF website.

Results from the Local Food Counts Project Now Live!

Over the past year, The New England Food System Planners Partnership (NEFSPP) has worked with Partners in New Hampshire, Maine, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut as well as a Regional research team to model Vermont's Local Food Count studies which have taken place since 2011. One of the chief initiatives of New England Feeding New England was to conduct Local Food Counts so that we can have a baseline estimate of how much local and regional food is being consumed in New England.

What researchers found was that total New England food spending was estimated at $120.5 billion in 2022, while local/regional food spending was estimated at $3.7 billion, or 3.1%. It is clear that sustained and collaborative action, along with significant and coordinated investment of resources, will be required to meet a goal of 30% consumption of regional food products by 2030.

Dig deeper into the data from NEFSPP below.

Maine Farm & Sea to Institution Network is supported by the Elmina B. Sewall Foundation

Maine Farm & Sea to Institution Network is supported by the Henry P. Kendall Foundation

Maine Farm & Sea to School Institute is supported by the United States Department of Agriculture

For any questions about Maine Farm & Sea to Institution, please contact Healthy Communities of the Capital Area's Food Systems Coordinator Alida Farrell at a.farrell@hccame.org