We are proud to announce the release of Abundant Montana‘s 2023 Local Food Guide! You can find this free resource online or in your community, available at local shops, businesses, markets and community spaces.
Since its early beginnings in 1995, Abundant Montana, a program of AERO, has remained committed to connecting Montanans to Montana-grown food, and to the resources—human, animal, and land—that make food possible. Today, Abundant Montana is still making those connections, now through an expanded marketing and media platform.
The 2023 Local Food Guide has over 800 listings of purpose-driven food and farming businesses, as well as a farmers market guide, a Seasonality Guide, community food resources, and recipes. You can also read stories about Montana food champions in the “Grow & Tell” section of the Guide.
This Guide is for you to enjoy and use as a resource all year long.
Enjoy! And bon appetit!
SY2023-24 OPI School Nutrition Programs Training Calendar Webinar Wednesday and Fall Workshops
Welcome back to SY2023-24. We are excited to have you all back and welcome to any new Food Service Directors and other school nutrition staff. If you are a new school FSD, please ensure you have received 8 hours of food safety training and have your Food Safety Manager's Certificate (like ServSafe) obtained (within 30 days of hire per Professional Standards Hiring Requirements for School Food Service Directors).
We have posted our upcoming training calendar and Fall Workshops on our SNP webpage [u15376568.ct.sendgrid.net]. Reminder that Food Service Directors are required to complete 12 hours (other full time school SNP staff require 6 hours) of training each year and these webinars and Fall workshop will credit towards this. Please keep a training log for the FSD and all food service staff.
8/16/2023 2-3pm: Online Free/Reduced Applications & New Medicaid
8/23/2023 2-3pm: Direct Certification Application (DCA) & New Medicaid
8/30/2023 9am-4pm (break for lunch): Virtual Fall Workshop
Upcoming in-person Fall Workshops [docs.google.com] [u15376568.ct.sendgrid.net] in September. Fall Workshops are from 9am-4pm with break for lunch for new and returning Food Service Directors and Administrative personnel such as your determining official, claim contact or business clerk. Topics that will be covered include: Free/Reduced Benefits Process, Administrative Requirements, Resource Management, Procurement, School Wellness Policy, Meal Patterns, Production Records, Professional Standards, Administrative Review and other topics.
Please register [docs.google.com] [u15376568.ct.sendgrid.net]to attend one (no registration fee). Food Service Directors are required to complete 12 hours (other full time school SNP staff require 6 hours) of training each year and this workshop will credit towards this. We hope to see you there!
This will help the truck drivers prior to and upon delivery:
Please provide cell phone numbers for the Food Service Director (or alternate person receiving deliveries) for the trucking company in case no one answers your school phone. Please reach out to your School Nutrition Specialist [u15376568.ct.sendgrid.net]to advise if you have not already provided an alternate phone number.
Someone needs to be available to be at your school Monday – Friday between 6am and 4pm to receive the delivery even if you have a 4-day school week.
Have storage areas ready to accept shipments.
Here is the list of items on this first shipment (if you had ordered them):
Shipment 1 August
AUG 21 thru SEP 15
110361
Applesauce- Cups
100360
Beans-Garbanzo
100158
Beef-Ground
100003
Cheese- Cheddar Shredded
111643
Cherries-Dried Single Serve
100187
Ham-Sliced
110393
Pancakes
110506
Pasta- Spaghetti
110504
Pasta-Rotini
100225
Pears-Canned Diced
100256
Strawberry Cups
Reminder that you can see what you had surveyed/ordered on the survey back in February by clicking on the yellow Food Distribution icon in MAPS [montanaopi.cnpus.com] [u15376568.ct.sendgrid.net], then Agencies > Surveys then click on the Survey # (190) to have an idea of what USDA Foods you may be receiving this year.
You will see DOD Fresh Program funds available in FFAVORS [u15376568.ct.sendgrid.net]soon. Please check in your FFAVORS account in a couple of weeks (if not sooner) to start ordering.
Schools will be getting what you surveyed/ordered in February 2023 for this first delivery. Any sponsor that did not submit their survey/order in February, we will be allocating some entitlement funds into the DOD Fresh Program in FFAVORS [u15376568.ct.sendgrid.net] for you to use throughout the school year.
Thank you, OPI School Nutrition Programs
Public Release
The OPI has completed the SNP Public Releaseon behalf of schools for SY2023-2024
Announcing the Publication of USDA’s Final Rule: Child Nutrition Program Integrity
On August 23, 2023, USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) published a final rule, Child Nutrition Program Integrity. The final rule impacts the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), School Breakfast Program (SBP), Special Milk Program (SMP), Summer Food Service Program (SFSP), and the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP). The rule finalizes provisions which strengthen program integrity while providing State agencies targeted flexibility to adapt oversight to meet their unique program circumstances. In addition, the final rule codifies into regulations CACFP provisions which have been common practice and previously implemented through guidance memos.
This Notice of Funding Availability announces the distribution of $30 million provided by the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023, to state agencies to competitively award Equipment Assistance Grants to eligible School Food Authorities participating in the National School Lunch Program.
SP18-2023
Congratulations to Awardees of the Healthy Meals Incentives Grants for Small and/or Rural School Food Authorities
As part of a cooperative agreement to develop and implement the USDA Food and Nutrition Service’s (FNS) Healthy Meals Incentives Initiative [gcc02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com], Action for Healthy Kids (AFHK) announced today that it is awarding nearly $30 million in grants to 264 SFAs across 44 states and the District of Columbia, reaching students in some of our nation’s highest need schools. These funds are being provided by USDA FNS.
Each small and/or rural SFA will receive up to $150,000 to support them in improving the nutritional quality of their meals and modernizing their operations, through efforts which could include:
Innovative staff training programs;
Kitchen updates and renovations;
Redesigning food preparation and service spaces;
Other school-district led efforts to support school meals and school nutrition professionals.
After using grant funds to make improvements to school meals, grant recipients are required to apply for one or more of the HMI Recognition Awards to demonstrate to their students and community that nutritious school meals are critically important to support child health and school achievement. The Recognition Awards application portal and helpful resources to complete the application are available at https://healthymealsincentives.org/recognition-awards/ [gcc02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com]. Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis through June 30, 2025. All SFAs in the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, and the United States Virgin Islands are invited to apply.
SFAs that meet Recognition Award criteria will receive benefits such as national and local recognition; an awardee toolkit that includes digital assets; travel stipends to attend a national Healthy Meals Summit; access to diverse best practices, training activities; and more.
State agencies are encouraged to share this announcement with their Child Nutrition Program operators and others who may be interested.
Celebrate Farm to School Month by Joining Montana Crunch Time on October 10!
Get ready to win, Montana! Registration is officially open for Montana Crunch Time [montana.edu], a free statewide event to celebrate National Farm to School Month [farmtoschool.org] by crunching into local foods on Tuesday, October 10, 2023. Crunch into any locally grown or raised food, including apples, carrots, chickpeas, jerky, and more! 🍎🥕🫛
All Montanans are invited to crunch whether at schools, early care and education sites, colleges, hospitals, work, home, or on the go. Anyone who wants to show support for local farmers and school food can join! Although we aim for a statewide collective crunch on October 10, you are welcome to crunch any day or time in October that works for you.
There are many ways to participate in Crunch Time including serving local foods for a meal, conducting a taste test to try local foods, or integrating food-based educational lessons in the classroom. In 2021, over 29,000 Montanans Crunched into local foods! Let's join forces and meet the goal of 30,000 crunches across the state!
This year states throughout the Mountain Plains Region (CO, MT, MO, KS, NE, ND, SD, WY) are partaking in a friendly competition to see which state can get the most “crunches”! The state with the most crunches per capita wins the crunch off challenge. Help Montana win by spreading the word and registering your crunch by October 31!
To make your crunch count towards Montana’s statewide goal, register HERE [ksde.sjc1.qualtrics.com]. After registering, you will be sent a 2023 edition of the MT Crunch Time guide including sources of local foods, educational activities, recipes, how to promote your crunch, and more! The guide will be sent out to registrants this fall. Learn more on the Montana Crunch Time webpage [montana.edu] and in this news release [montana.edu] or contact Haley Scott, Montana Team Nutrition Program Lead, at (406) 994-5641 or
The OPI is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to people with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation, require an alternate format, or have questions concerning accessibility, contact the OPI ADA Coordinator, 406-444-3161, opiada@mt.gov, Relay Service: 711.
