Maine
Farm to School News
January 2020
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Meet & greet the school nutrition professionals on the
Maine Farm to School Leadership Council
, and join in on a discussion with Maine producers about selling to Maine schools. All are welcome to this free event.
Thursday, January 16, 2020
11:00 am - 1:00 pm
Augusta Civic Center, Franklin Room
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News, Opportunities, and Resources
State of Maine
- Central Lincoln County School System is now hiring a Food Service Director, with a focus on healthy, local foods; view position description HERE.
Regional
- FREE 2019 SEEDS for schools and organizations available for order through January 11th through University of Rhode Island Master Gardener Program.
- KidsGardening now accepting applications until February 14th for the 2020 Gro More Good Grassroots Grant,
- Awards provide funding for the development of new and expansion of existing youth garden programs and greenspaces serving 15 or more youth.
- New, comprehensive farm to school resource guide from VT FEED, download HERE
National
Upcoming Partner Events
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The Northeast Farm to School Collaborative, a r
egional network of farm to school leaders
from each Northeast state, met last month for strategic regional planning and to allocate funding for state-level projects. Additionally, the collaborative is supporting each state with technical assistance from
Action Circles
to work on statewide policy and advocacy.
Here is a snapshot of each state's project:
Maine
:
Developing an Innovation Grant opportunity that will provide small grants (~$1,000 each) to local level projects that 1. Show innovation, 2. Support local procurement, and/or 3. Build the statewide network. Grants will be awarded utilizing the
Shared Gifting
model where awardees come together face to face to meet one another and share their project ideas, offer resources and ideas, and participate in grant fund allocation to support the projects the full group sees as having the most potential and/or need, utilizing an equity lens.
Massachusetts
:
Advancing state farm to school policy through increased local food tracking, procurement and sales, as well as engaging a greater community of people in farm to school.
New Hampshire
:
Launching the NH Farm to School Network, drafting policy/legislation in preparation for the 2021 legislative session, and hosting a 2020 farm to school conference.
New York
:
Supporting a 2020-2021
NYS Farm to School Institute
Learning Journeys program, including travel to organizations/schools demonstrating groundbreaking farm to school efforts. The purpose of the program is to inspire solutions and offer new models for participating Institute school teams.
Rhode Island:
Enhancing support and reach of the RI Harvest of the Month Program through establishing and expanding a statewide farm to school network and developing a local procurement tracking platform.
Vermont
:
Engaging in a grassroots campaign to pass state legislation that would offer VT schools an additional 25 cents/meal for purchasing 25% fresh or minimally processed VT food.
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Meet
Stephanie Stambach
,
Maine Department of Education
Child Nutrition Specialist
A little bit about Stephanie:
"I was born and raised in Maine and enjoy exploring all that the state has to offer! Some of my favorite places to explore with my family are Moosehead Lake and Acadia, as well as other national parks. I have a 2 year old daughter, Noelle, and a dog, Missy, who both keep me busy on a daily basis!
I advocate for farm to school
because
it’s all about giving our students the best meal possible in school.
Some of my favorite local foods are
tomatoes and basil from the garden; cheese; and wild blueberries of course!"
Stephanie's current farm to school projects:
"Right now the Department of Education and Department of Agriculture, Conservation, and Forestry are partnering to create a series of farm PSAs to showcase the partnerships between farmers and schools, and
culinary videos for school nutrition professionals
. These will be great resources for both audiences and has been a fun project to work on. I also coordinate the
annual Farm to School Cook-off
, which is a cooking competition involving students and school nutrition staff."
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Share your Harvest of the Month photos & stories on Instagram
@hom.maine
#mainehom
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January Recipe Highlight:
Roasted Rosemary Winter Vegetables
YIELD
100 SERVINGS (K–5) SERVING SIZE: 2/3 CUP
NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION
CALORIES: 104; SODIUM: 127.54 MG; SATURATED FAT: 4.01%
USDA REQUIREMENTS MET
½ CUP OTHER VEGETABLE
- 37 small red bliss potatoes, cut into 1½-inch wedges (13¾ pounds)
- 50 large carrots (or about 28 sweet potatoes), cut into 1-inch pieces (8 pounds)
- 11 large green peppers, cut in half lengthwise and then each half into 4 pieces (4¼ pounds)
- 2 tablespoons minced fresh garlic
- 2 tablespoons dried rosemary
- 1½ cups canola oil
- 4 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
Toss the cut red potatoes in a large bowl or hotel pan with the carrots (or sweet potatoes), peppers, oil, garlic, rosemary, salt, and pepper. All the vegetables should be well-coated with oil. Spread vegetables on sheet pans in a single layer. Roast at 400°F for 30 to 40 minutes in a convection oven (or at 425°F for 35 to 45 minutes in a conventional oven) until potatoes are cooked through and slightly browned.
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Finding this Farm to School News helpful?
Forward along to a colleague!
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Please
contact us
and we will share & highlight YOUR news as well!
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Now Recruiting Committee Members
Building a communication and coordination infrastructure at the school and community level to support farm to school programs throughout Maine.
EDUCATION + PROCUREMENT + SCHOOL GARDENS
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Healthy Communities of the Capital Area (HCCA) is the fiscal and staffing home of MFSN. HCCA's mission is to convene and support people, organizations, and communities to collaborate on quality of life and public health issues.
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The Maine Farm to School Network is supported by the Henry P. Kendall Foundation.
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