1. ,Challenges
and
Opportuni:es
with
Introducing
Farm
to
School
in
Omaha
Amy
L.
Yaroch,
Ph.D.
Community
Food
Security
Coali:on
Annual
Conference
November
5,
2011

2. About
Us
The
Center
is
a
Omaha
based
independent
non-­‐pro7it
research
organization
providing
research,
evaluation
and
partnership
in:
childhood
obesity
prevention,
food
insecurity,
and
local
food
systems
Website:
www.centerfornutri:on.org
Like
us
on
Facebook:
www.facebook.com/CenterforNutri:on
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us
on
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3. What
is
Farm
to
School?
Farm
to
School
in
Douglas
County,
NE
Benefits
Challenges
Support
local
and
regional
producers
Budget
constraints
(and
hence
the
economy)
Connects
children
to
agriculture
Changing
exis:ng
procedures
(insurance,
bidding
process,
distribu?on)
Benefits
the
environment
Procuring
sufficient
volume
of
par:cular
products
Builds
community
(know
your
farmer,
GeUng
started
know
your
food)

4. Increasing
awareness
of
local
foods

5. Timeline
of
activities
03/10
12/10
10/11
03/12
Conduct
Re-­‐conduct
Bootcamp
Develop
Receive
needs
needs
with
food
Toolkits
CPPW
grant
assessment
assessment
service
Mee:ng
directors
with
key
stakeholders
Technical
Technical
assistance
–
NY
assistance
–
CFSC
City
Dept
Health

6. Where
is
NE
at
on
the
Farm
to
School
Spectrum?
•
Our
CPPW
program
is
the
first
major
farm
to
school
ini:a:ve
in
state
•
NE
is
an
agricultural
state,
but
not
tradi:onally
“into
local”
•
Omaha
is
currently
undergoing
a
paradigm
shia
in
the
local
foods
movement
•
Growth
in
Farmers
Markets
(also
EBT)
•
NE
Food
Coopera:ve
•
Restaurants

7. The
needs
assessment
in
NE
Administered
ques:onnaires
in
2010
with:
•
Food
service
directors
(N=7)
Local
producers
(N=49)
Distributors
(N=5)

8. Food
Service
Directors
•
Reasons
FOOD
SERVICE
DIRECTORS
did
not
purchase
from
local
producers:
•
Food
Safety
Concerns
(67%)
•
Difficult
to
purchase
directly
(62%)
•
Distribu:on
issues
(45%)
•
Timing
of
deliveries
(43%)
•
Harder
to
handle
fresh
produce
(36%)
•
Price
and
Budget
(33%)
•
Other
(seasonality,
quality,
#
of
invoices
and
ini:a:ves)

9. Producers
•
Reasons
why
PRODUCERS
not
selling
to
schools:
•
Not
being
able
to
produce
food
throughout
the
en:re
school
year
•
Not
being
able
to
produce
sufficient
volume
of
food
•
PRODUCERS
mainly
selling
products
to:
•
Farmers
Markets
•
Local
stores
•
Restaurants
•
CSA’s

10. Distributors
prepared
foods
25%
grains
25%
eggs
75%
dairy
poultry
25%
75%
Foods
Most
pork
25%
Commonly
beef
frozen
veg
25%
25%
Sold
to
Schools
frozen
fruit
25%
canned
veg
25%
canned
fruit
25%
fresh
veg
75%
fresh
fruit
75%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
prepared
foods
0%
grains
0%
eggs
25%
dairy
25%
Foods
Most
poultry
pork
25%
25%
Commonly
beef
25%
Sourced
Locally
frozen
veg
0%
frozen
fruit
0%
canned
veg
0%
canned
fruit
0%
fresh
veg
75%
fresh
fruit
100%
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
120%

11. Grassroots
approach
•
Some
states
work
from
a
top
down
approach
such
as
passing
policies
through
the
board
of
educa:on
•
In
Nebraska,
schools
more
likely
to
start
with
implementa:on
and
think
about
policy
later

12. Farm
to
school
activities
in
Omaha
Success
with
3
Procedural
Greater
Food
Service
Change
Awareness
of
Directors
• ALL
signed
a
memo
Local
Food
and
• A
to
Z
Salad
Bar
added
to
opera:ng
Farm
to
School
• Fresh
Pick
of
the
procedures
• “when
• Food
Day
Omaha
Month
• NewsleKers/menus
economically
feasible,
the
preference
will
be
to
purchase
local
foods”

13. Diversity
of
foods
for
F2S
in
NE
Local
doesn’t
have
to
mean
fruits
and
vegetables!
Low
Local
meat
sodium,
such
as
Locally
whole-­‐ bison
and
produced
wheat
ground
cheese
tor:llas
hamburger

15. Toolkits
•
Not
originally
planned,
developed
in
response
to
stakeholders
request
•
Prac:cal
resources
and
guidance
to
implement
farm
to
school
for
key
stakeholders
•
Food
service
personnel,
producers,
distributors
•
Created
with
Nebraskans
in
mind
•
Goals
are
to
increase
implementa;on
and
dissemina;on

16. Toolkits
for
Farm
to
School
in
Nebraska
•
One-­‐stop
resource
to
get
started
as
well
as
for
those
who
are
further
advanced
• For
food
service
professionals,
producers,
and
distributors
• toolkit.centerfornutri:on.org

17. What
is
local?
(250
mile
radius)

18. Seasonality
in
NE

19. Choose
Local
Poster

20. Technical
Assistance
•
NY
City
Department
of
Health
•
Support
FSD
from
largest
district
to
aKend
“What’s
Working
in
School
Food”
conference
and
the
School
Food
Focus
mee:ng
•
Community
Food
Security
Coali:on
•
Support
two
team
members
to
par:cipate
in
Maine’s
food
service
director
boot
camp
•
Support
to
conduct
Nebraska
boot
camp
Allows
us
to
bridge
the
gap
between
knowledge
and
ac:on!

21. Boot
Camp
for
Food
Service
Personnel
• Foods
available
year
round
Show
different
• Demonstrate
other
ins:tu:on’s
ways
to
method
•
Demonstrate
viable
op:ons
for
integrate
local
recipes
• Discuss
hurdles
and
how
to
food
in
menus
overcome
• Farm
tours
allows
food
service
personnel
to
network
with
producers
PuUng
a
face
• Exposed
to
the
benefits
of
naturally
on
local
foods
raised,
locally
procured
products
• Ability
to
network
with
peers

22. Remaining
Challenges
•
Engaging
the
remaining
food
service
directors
•
GeUng
community
buy-­‐in
for
sustainability
•
Engage
distributors
further
•
Producers
seeing
value
outside
of
current
successful
venues

23. Future
Directions
Educate
Lengthen
growing
season
Build
Infrastructure

24. Acknowledgements
• Mary
Chapman
• Chelsey
Erpelding,
MPH
• Courtney
Pinard,
PhD

25. Questions?
Amy L Yaroch, PhD
Executive Director
Gretchen Swanson Center for Nutrition
505 Durham Research Plaza
Omaha, NE 68105-1313
Phone: 402-559-5500
Fax: 402-559-7302
ayaroch@centerfornutrition.org
www.centerfornutrition.org