Who Grows Food for RI Public Schools?
- Aquidneck Honey Middletown
- Barden Family Orchard North Scituate
- Confreda Farms Hope
- Cpt Elisha Steere Farm Greenville
- Ferolbink Farm Tiverton
- Goodwin Brothers Farm North Smithfield
- Harmony Farms North Scituate
- Hill Orchards Johnston
- Knight Farm North Scituate
- Jaswell's Farm Smithfield
- Nonquit Salad Farm Tiverton
- Pezza Farm Cranston
- Pippin Orchard Cranston
- Quonset View Farm Portsmouth
- Rhode Island Nurseries Middletown
- Rhody Fresh nine farms
- Salisbury Farms Johnston
- Schartner Farm Exeter
- Steere Orchard Smithfield
- Young Family Farm Little Compton
- Zephyr Farm Cranston
Funders
A very special thank you to our Rhode Island Farm to School funders for their generous support:
- Kids First
- The Sharpe Family Foundation
- The Carter Family Foundation
- The RI DEM Division of Agriculture (USDA Specialty Crop Grant)
Community Partners
- RI Department of Education
- RI Department of Health
- RI Training School & DCYF
- RI public and independent schools
- RI farmers
- Aramark
- Chartwells School Dining Services
- Sodexo School Food Services
- National Farm to School Network
- Farm to Institution New England
Farm to School
Empowering youth to love fresh food and to be food systems fluent
The RI Farm to School Project began in 2004 at Kids First and now continues at Farm Fresh Rhode Island as a part of our mission to connect every Rhode Islander with fresh, local food. At the same time that obesity and diabetes are occurring at record rates among children, the Farm to School Project empowers youth to think critically about the food they eat, to learn about nearby farms and how food is produced, and to taste for themselves that healthy, fresh foods can be super delicious. Paired with programs like Harvest Kitchen and Healthy Foods, Healthy Families, the Farm to School Project is a critical part of Farm Fresh's strategy for fostering a culture of healthy eating in the next generation of eaters.
Local in the Cafeteria
- Getting more locally grown foods into Rhode Island schools.
- Assistance for school food buyers about buying from local farmers, with the goal of more fresh Rhode Island grown foods in more Rhode Island school cafeterias
- Ask for RI Grown in your child's school!
Food System Education
- Food systems curricula using hands-on experiences with food, farms and farmers as a starting point.
- Learning about healthy eating and where our food comes from through farmers visiting schools, cooking demos in classrooms and cafeterias, and field trips to farms.
Who is engaged in Farm to School?
- Pre-schools
- Childrens Workshop in Lincoln, Sweet Peas Village in East Greenwich and URI Child Development Center in Kingston participate in Veggie Box
- Childrens Village in Cambridge buys local milk and veggies through Market Mobile
Public K-12 schools
- RI public schools spent $175,000 on food from RI farmers in 2011-12. That added up to about 250,000 pounds of RI produce and milk. Every district bought some amount of RI grown produce.
- Continuing the Farm to School work begun at KidsFirst, Farm Fresh RI is in regular contact with farms and food service staff to communicate what's in season and available for purchase. Farms are rarely allowed to deliver directly to public schools in RI. Local food travels through different distribution channels depending on the school district's food service company and its preferred distributor. In most cases, distributors purchase from RI farms by special request of the school district.
2011 RI schools food purchasing
Highest local per student: Portsmouth ($5.01)
Lowest local per student: Jamestown (9¢)
See full rankings...2011 RI grown sales to public schools$100,000
Apples are the big seller, with schools buying over $100,000 from Barden, Hill, Narrow Lane, Pippin and Steere orchards. Almost every district bought RI apples at some point in the year. No other crop came close!< $15,000
Cherry tomatoes ($15,000), peppers ($10,000), Rhody Fresh milk ($9,000), potatoes ($8,000), peaches ($6,000), cucumbers ($6,000), nectarines ($5,500), summer squash and zucchini ($5,000).< $5,000
Basil, broccoli, butternut squash, cauliflower, carrots, corn, eggplant, eggs, green beans, honey, lettuce, onions, pumpkins, strawberries, and tomatoes were purchased in tiny amounts. - More of our public school food budget could be going into high quality, fresh RI grown foods! The growing season and school year don't perfectly line up but September through November is prime harvest time, and there is a great opportunity for storage crops year-round.
- See how your K-12 district gets RI grown food and the amount they purchased in the 2011-12 school year.
- Classroom workshops and cooking demos. Farm to School classroom education programs offer interactive, hands on activities and presentations that support and complement curriculum or introduce exciting new subject matter. Programs include an overview of Rhode Island agriculture and deliver basic nutrition concepts by providing an understanding of what food does for our bodies. Students learn the impact of their food choices on their own health, the economy, their environment and community. From science, civics, language arts, health or math perspectives, we make learning fun by engaging the mind, body and senses.
- Field trips. Classroom education programs are followed up with a trip to a local farm. Students meet the farmer, learn all about the work that takes place on the farm, interact with farm animals and observe the planting, growing and or harvesting of farm fresh produce. Depending on the farm and the season, hands-on activities include seeding, planting, transplanting, gathering eggs, hayrides, picking and tasting.
- Cooking Demos. Locally produced foods are featured in healthful and delicious recipes, that are quick and easy to prepare. Participants gain insight as to the seasonality, availability and nutritional aspects of local food while interacting with chefs knowledgeable in local foods and nutrition. These lively demonstrations and tastings are fun, educational sessions that engage all five senses in the learning, imparting new knowledge about how to make healthier food choices and incorporate them into daily eating habits. Participants leave with an understanding of the impact their choices have on their health, the local economy, environment and community as well as recipes and tips so that the fun can continue at home.
- Veggie Box. Hopkins Hill Elementary School in Coventry is a weekly Veggie Box pickup site for parents, teachers and staff.
- Private K-12 schools
- Cluny School, Henry Barnards School, Lincoln School, Portsmouth Abbey School, and West Bay Christian Academy all buy lots of Rhody Fresh milk.
- We are not aware of other efforts to source from RI farms at any RI private schools, but that doesn't mean it's not happening. Let us know!
- Public colleges
- URI buys Rhody Fresh milk for some of its mini-marts and a cafe.
- We are not aware of other efforts to source from RI farms at any RI public colleges, but that doesn't mean it's not happening. Let us know!
- Private colleges
- Brown has a fall farmers market, a student-led CSA and sources locally for their cafeteria from farmers at the farmers market. 100% of their milk now comes from Rhody Fresh. The University also co-hosts the annual RI Local Food Forum and has classes on food systems.
- RISD extensively buys from 50 family farms through our Market Mobile aggregated delivery service for each of their dining units. RISD also has standing orders directly with many RI farms.
- Roger Williams has a Farm to Fork program through its food service management company, Bon Appetit.
- Brown, RISD, Roger Williams and Salve Regina all buy lots of Rhody Fresh milk.
- Youth education at farmers markets
- See our Healthy Foods, Healthy Families program at markets in Newport, Pawtucket, Providence, West Warwick and Woonsocket.
- DCYF partnership
- Culinary & food education for youth in the juvenile justice system: Harvest Kitchen
- Culinary & food education for youth in the juvenile justice system: Harvest Kitchen
Aquidneck Island Apiaries
Harmony Farms
Quonset View Farms
Barden Family Orchards
Hill Orchards
Rhode Island Nurseries
Captain Elisha Steere Farm
Jaswell's Farm
Salisbury Farms
Confreda Greenhouses & Farms
Knight Farm
Schartner Farm
Crosswinds Little Farm
Nonquit Salad Farm
Steere Orchard
Ferolbink Farm
Young Family Farm
Goodwin Brothers Farm
Pippin Orchard
Zephyr Farm