Farm to School (F2S) Month is Capped by Tour of Smithfield Farm that Helps Drive Effective Local F2S Program

Published on Friday, October 27, 2023

PROVIDENCE, RI – State Senate President Pro Tempore Hanna M. Gallo, State Senator John Burke, the Rhode Island Farm to School (RIF2S) Network, Superintendent of Smithfield Public Schools Dawn Bartz and Assistant Superintendent Sara Monaco, Rhode Island Healthy Schools Coalition (RIHSC) Co- Director Karin Wetherill, and staff from the Department of Environmental Management (DEM) Division of Agriculture and Forestry, the Rhode Island Commerce Corporation, and the Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE) today heard from an influential constituency about the importance of including fresh, high-quality, local food in local school cafeterias: second graders at Pleasant View Elementary School. The students were visiting Revive the Roots, a non-profit organization and steward of the Mowry Commons farm property in Smithfield. Revive the Roots is a critical partner in Smithfield’s Farm to School Program, supporting the district by hosting field trips to their five-acre property and providing school garden capacity building and food literacy education. The Smithfield Public School District has developed a model farm to school program with their cafeterias serving local food and teachers delivering lessons on agricultural science and food literacy. Mowry Commons is open to the public from sunrise to sunset year-round and features community gardens, an edible forest garden, large open fields for sports and games, forests, walking trails, streams, and ponds.

The visit to Revive the Roots capped a busy month of October, which Governor Dan McKee earlier proclaimed as Rhode Island Farm to School Month.

In recognition of Farm to School Month, DEM is announcing a $260,000 United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm to School grant award. The award will provide RIF2S with funding allowing the network to boost local procurement for Rhode Island schools and further support the RIF2S Network, which has expanded throughout Rhode Island. More schools and districts are buying foods locally and providing educational activities to students that emphasize food, farming, and nutrition. The statewide Farm to School Month aligns with National Farm to School Month, which Congress designated in 2010 as an annual showcase of food education, school gardens, and lunch trays filled with nutritious, local ingredients.

 

The RIF2S Network brings locally produced foods into school cafeterias and provides hands-on learning activities such as school gardening, farm visits, and culinary classes, which align with Governor McKee and RIDE’s Learn365RI out-of-school learning and Learning Inside Out Outdoor Classroom initiatives, which are designed to shift learning from the traditional 180 school days to 365 days and support equitable access to natural resources for all students, while promoting environmental literacy and community connection. By teaching students the importance of locally grown food, the RIF2S Network supports the Rhode Island Food Strategy (Relish Rhody), which envisions a sustainable, equitable food system. Eating RI Grown foods supports local farmers and helps ensure Rhode Island’s future food security. Minimizing transportation of food preserves fossil fuels, drastically reduces pollution, and can help lower much of the final costs to consumers.

“Having worked in public schools for most of my professional life and served on the Senate Education Committee for many years, I appreciate that healthy school meals fuel the success of tens of thousands of Rhode Island children daily,” said Senate President Pro Tempore Hanna M. Gallo. “Our state’s farm to school programs ensure that these meals are as healthy as they can be, support local farmers, and strengthen food security. The USDA grant award is a wonderful investment in Rhode Island.”

“Food, nutrition, and gardening education programs empower students to make informed choices, form lifelong healthy habits, improve eating behaviors, and enhance academic achievement – so, obtaining this USDA Farm to School grant award is a very big deal and a tribute to the effectiveness of all partners involved in the endeavor,” said DEM Director Terry Gray. “The fact that RIF2S also helps local farmers and stimulates the Rhode Island economy makes it a win on every level.”

“It's more vital than ever to teach our children about making nutritious food choices. By introducing them to healthy, locally-sourced foods, we empower them to make choices that not only nourish their bodies but also set the stage for lifelong healthy eating habits,” said Commissioner Angélica Infante-Green. “Thank you to our partners including DEM and RI Commerce who work collaboratively every day to ensure the success of Rhode Island Farm and Sea to School program and provide access to nutritious meals to all children, regardless of their zip code.”

“Rhode Island’s small farms, fishers, and local food producers have taken advantage of the ‘buy local’ movement through farmers markets and community supported agriculture (CSAs) programs. However, they often must navigate obstacles to access institutional markets. For K-12 schools, strict nutritional requirements along with consistent and high volume demands makes it hard for local food businesses to get their food into local schools,” said Rhode Island Commerce Director of Food Strategy Julianne Stelmaszyk. “We look forward to continuing our partnership with DEM, RIDE, and the State’s first Farm and Sea to School Director to provide critical coordination between local food producers and schools to build stronger connections across the supply chain, and support school food service operators in identifying strategies to serve more locally grown, caught, and harvested food in schools.”

“It’s wonderful to have funding and collaboration with Smithfield Public Schools to bring kindergarten and 2nd graders to Mowry Common for field trips, as well as bring Farm Educator Annie Bayer into classrooms and school gardens,” said Revive the Roots Executive Director Hannah Martin. “Revive the Roots was formed in 2011 by a group of recent Smithfield High School graduates, so sharing the joys of growing food and being outside with the next generation feels deeply connected to our roots. We hope that the lesson we share with these students fosters a generation of land stewards who see the interconnectedness of sustainable agriculture, thriving habitats, and supportive communities.”

“Farm to School is a proven strategy to help schools and communities reach their goals around education, health and wellness, food insecurity, farm viability, and more,” said Stephanie Pike, Farm and Sea to School Director. “The state coordination in the Rhode Island Farm to School Network around building these programs is essential. It allows us to create more Farm to School opportunities and ease of use for all schools, food producers, and communities to participate in meaningful ways.”

“Farm Fresh Rhode Island is excited to work with DEM and the RI Farm to School Network to continue to build strong relationships between schools and the local food system,” said Farm Fresh Rhode Island Co-Executive Director Jesse Rye. “Forging transparent sourcing relationships helps to ensure that local farmers, fishers, and food makers play a significant role in providing nutritious school meals to Rhode Island’s students. Local food in schools contributes to a more resilient supply chain that is better for the environment and bolsters local economies.”



“We’re seeing a growing interest for Farm to School in communities across the state. Families, students, and educators are becoming more knowledgeable about where their food comes from along with its economic and environmental impact,” said RI Healthy Schools Coalition Co-Director Karin Wetherill. “There’s always excitement when local fresh foods are prepared and served in school cafeterias. They taste great, after all!” 

The RIF2S Project began in 1999 with the goal of improving children’s nutrition, supporting sustainable agriculture, and preserving open space and the quality of Rhode Island’s environment by integrating locally grown foods into school cafeterias. The RIF2S Network was established in 2019 to provide leadership and unify advocacy, funding, and organizational capacities to strengthen and expand farm to school efforts in all RI communities. It’s a joint initiative of DEM, RIDE, Rhode Island Commerce, RIHSC, and Farm Fresh Rhode Island (FFRI), funded partly by the USDA Food and Nutrition Service and the Henry P. Kendall Foundation. In the past four years, the RIF2S network has worked to engage partners to develop, expand, and strengthen local procurement, education, and gardening initiatives. Through this collaborative network, state agencies and community organizations have partnered to provide comprehensive support to RI’s educators, farmers, and families as they work to create a healthier, more just food system. In 2023, more than two million dollars in federal funding has been provided to schools to purchase directly from local farmers through FFRI’s Market Mobile Platform.



In 2023, the RIF2S network began the development of a Farm to School Action Plan to guide priorities and strategies for the next five years, which aims to honor Rhode Island’s educational infrastructure as a mini food system, with diverse opportunities for engagement with farmers, educators, and families. RI’s Farm and Sea to School Director position has begun working with stakeholders to spearhead the development of a Farm to School Action Plan, with a heavy focus on value chain coordination and expansion of local procurement in school meals. More than 50 stakeholders have provided input to inform the plan, including educators, parents, farmers, and community members.

Yesterday, the Henry P. Kendall Foundation announced that FFRI and the Smithfield Public School District, in collaboration with Boston Food Hub and Harvesting Good, have won a $200,000 grant award as part of the 2023 New England Food Vision Prize, a multi-year commitment aimed at building resiliency, relationships, and capacity within New England’s farm to institution food supply chain. Additionally, the Pocasset Pokanoket Land Trust, in collaboration with the Cumberland School District, Open Farms Retreat, Roch’s Fresh Foods, and Northeast Organic Farmers Association also won a $120,300 award to support a two-year program designed to create a direct farm-to-school pathway in Cumberland. This funding will support new farm infrastructure and required certifications, beginning-farmer technical assistance and training, and school and community engagement efforts. Launched in 2018, the New England Food Vision Prize is named for the regional goal of producing 50% of New England’s food within the region by 2060. Its focus is to combine the food purchasing power of educational institutions with the engagement of students to increase the amount of regionally produced food on school menus.

With more than 12.7M lunches and 5.7M breakfasts served in Rhode Island each school year, farm to school programming presents a tremendous opportunity to increase access to fresh local food for all students, and create new market channels for local food producers such as farmers, seafood harvesters, and local food entrepreneurs. Schools across Rhode Island continue to offer these programs in innovative ways; at Cumberland High School, a shipping container has been transformed into a productive hydroponic farm that provides fresh lettuce and herbs for the meal service operated by Sodexo. In 2023, the districts of Chariho, Smithfield, Burrillville, and Johnston received USDA Healthy Meal Incentive grants to help improve the nutritional quality of school meals.

On Nov. 9, from 3 to 6 PM at FFRI, the RIF2S network will host its first annual convening to celebrate farm to school in RI and inform the Farm to School Action Plan. Those interested in connecting students with locally grown and nutritious foods are encouraged to learn more at www.farmtoschool.org/our-network/rhode-island.

For more information on DEM programs and initiatives, visit www.dem.ri.gov. Follow DEM on Facebook, Twitter (@RhodeIslandDEM), or Instagram (@rhodeisland.dem) for timely updates.

Earlier this month, Governor McKee signed a proclamation designating October as Farm to School Month. RI Secretary of Commerce Liz Tanner, DEM Director Terry Gray, DEM Division of Agriculture and Forestry Chief Ken Ayars, DEM Agriculture staff, and members of the RI Farm to School leadership council – which includes representatives from the Rhode Island Department of Education, Chartwells, and Farm Fresh RI – joined. Attendees crunched apples provided by Steere Orchard in Greenville