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Master the Menu Sub-Grants Available NOW!
Has your District had School Nutrition Professionals taking part in our Team Nutrition 'Master the Menu' training activities?
If so, your District is eligible to apply for BOTH sub-grant opportunities!
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1. Equipment Purchase, based on post-training implementation
- DUE December 29, 2023!
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Competitive Grant; We have 50 sub-grants available for up to $2,500 per SFA/District.
2. Personnel Reimbursement
- Due no later than March 29, 2024. Districts can submit any time once training has been complete or costs have been expended.
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Non-Competitive Grant: this is to help provide reimbursement to the District for personnel expenses paid during participation in Master the Menu Training activities.
- Up to $2,000 per District, based on enrollment. You may include all incurred costs, as funds may be reallocated as they are available.
Reminders & Updates on Master the Menu Activities:
- Spots still remain for the 8-hour track 'Meal Pattern Breakdown' for a $100 incentive bonus. If you are interested in taking part, register here: Master The Menu: North Dakota's Team Nutrition Training Grant Registration (office.com). This track is geared towards any food service staff member who needs to know the details of the meal pattern.
- We do not have any further in-person trainings scheduled at this time, so all training will be conducted in a virtual format.
- If interest is peaked in a specific area of the State, we may be able to schedule an in-person event. Please reach out to Amy or Emily to inquire.
- The SPANISH version of our Meal Pattern Breakdown will be available on our online learning module THIS MONTH! Once it goes live, an email will be sent to those already registered, who indicated they would like to take the course in Spanish.
If you have questions about this training program, please reach out to Amy Nelson, Project Director, at amylnelson@nd.gov or Emily Karel, Project Coordinator, at ekarel@nd.gov
The health inspector has been at many of the school kitchens already this fall. Our tracking of the healthy inspection reports reveals that there are some kitchens who are:
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Still reusing ‘Single Use containers’ for leftovers. Please throw out or give those sour cream buckets, Mrs. Gerry’s salad containers and ice cream buckets to the janitor or preschool class to repurpose. It is a violation of the Food Code to reuse them to store food in: 4-502.13(A) Single-Service and Single-Use Articles, Use Limitation - May not be reused
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Observation: Single service containers shall not be reused for food storage.
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Storing shelled eggs above Ready to Eat items. Please move your fresh eggs to a shelve where no other food is below them.
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Not checking the sanitizer effectiveness on the dishwasher. If your dishwasher sanitizes by hot water, you must have a thermometer specially made for the dishwasher or thermo-strip to check the temperature of the sanitizing water. If your dishwasher is has chemicals to sanitize, then you need the appropriate chemical test strips.
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Do you really want to eat with a fork that has not been properly sanitized? The only way to know if it is sanitized is to check!
Salmonella in Cantaloupe
None of the brands have been found in North Dakota. However, it would be a good idea to review your Standard Operating Procedure for food recalls as well as the one on Washing Produce. Both should be in your Food Safety Plan. If you can’t find yours, find templates in your HACCP manual or in the Food Safety Manual, as provided by NDDPI.
December Harvest of the Month is Dark Red Kidney Beans focuses on the wonderful health benefits of beans, specifically dark red kidney beans. Check out NDSU Extension and Northarvest Beans resource titled “All About Beans”.
From the publication, “Beans are among the most versatile and commonly eaten foods throughout the world, and many varieties are grown in the U.S. because of their nutritional composition, these economical foods have the potential to improve the diet quality and long-term health of those who consume beans regularly [1, 2, 3].”
PLANTS will fund eight collaborative projects led by groups of local partners advancing systemic and equity-driven approaches to transforming school food supply chains.
Projects should seek to build and strengthen relationships among community-based food system stakeholders and school districts and expand scratch cooking in schools to build healthier school meal programs.
Grant awards will be between $500,000 and $600,000 and will not require grantees to match funding. Entities eligible to apply include School Food Authorities, food producers, food distributors and aggregators, nonprofits, and local government agencies.
An informational webinar was held on November 29th. Check back to the website for more information and for the recording to the webinar to learn about the application process and program requirements. The Lunch Box | Partnerships for Local Agriculture & Nutrition…
2. Patrick Leahy Farm to School Grant Program Request for Applications
On October 11, the USDA Patrick Leahy Farm to School Grant Program (Farm to School Grant Program) announced the opening of the fiscal year (FY) Farm to School Grant Program Request for Application (RFA). USDA expects to award approximately $12 million in grant awards for activities such as training, supporting operations, planning, purchasing equipment, developing school gardens, and implementing farm to school programs. Since FY 2013, USDA has awarded over $84 million through the Farm to School Grant Program, funding more than 1,100 projects across all 50 states, the District of Columbia, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, and Puerto Rico, reaching over 28 million students in nearly 63,000 schools.
Eligible applicants may include schools and other institutions that operate child nutrition programs, tribal organizations, agricultural producers or groups of agricultural producers, nonprofit entities, and state and local government agencies.
The grant program takes a comprehensive approach to advancing equity for all in farm to school programming by prioritizing applications serving at least 40 percent of students who are eligible for free or reduced-price meals; applications from Indian Tribal Organizations (ITOs) serving tribal communities; applications from organizations led by and serving Black, Indigenous or other communities of color; applications based in and serving rural communities; and applications from agricultural producers or groups of agricultural producers.
If you want to apply, please visit Resources for Farm to School Grant Program Applicants webpage for more information. Complete applications must be submitted to Grants.gov by 11:59 pm ET on Friday, January 12, 2024.
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USDA Farm to School Census
The 2023 Census opened the first week of October, and it is very important that you participate, as it measures our progress toward improving access to local foods in schools. Every SFA director was sent a shareable link from Farm2SchoolCensus@dir-online.com. If you didn’t receive the Census link, from that email address, please let me know. Amanda Olson amolson@nd.gov or 701-328-0817.
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You can find resources below. A worksheet and sample questions are provided to help you gather your information before receiving the survey. The Census closes at the end of December 2023. Even if you think you’re not doing anything in Farm to School, please fill it out. Even if you only purchased one local item this past school year, please fill it out. Please get in touch with me with any questions.
Our office will hold a basket drawing for those who have completed the 2023 USDA Census. Your entry is included when you submit the 2023 Census. USDA sends out the list of those who have completed the Census. Drawing will be held in early January 2024 for 3 baskets to SFA Directors to share. Great items have been donated from various organizations and agencies including ND Soybean Council, ND Dept. of Agriculture, FARRMS, NDSU Extension, and more.
As of November 27, 2023, 71 SFAs have completed the Census, 29 are in-progress, and 69 SFAs haven’t started or opened the link. Last week we only had 50 completed surveys, so thank you to those who have filled it out since then.
Farm to School Census Partner Resources | Food and Nutrition Service (usda.gov)
USDA Mountain Plains Region Crunch Off results are in!
North Dakota took 2nd place this year. North Dakota increased from 14,285 Crunches in 2022 to 26,430 in 2023!
2023 was an amazing success in Crunch Off! As a region, the participation from all of MPRO states was well beyond anything expected.
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- The Mountain Plains Region destroyed the 230,000 overall Crunch participant goal! The region tallied 444,379 total Crunches!!!
- Every single state in the region increased their participation from 2022.
- ECE (Early Child Education) and Ages 0-5 participation increased from 23,429 in 2022 to 31,490 in 2023! This is great news as we work to push Farm to School into Farm to Early Child Nutrition Programs territory.
- Nebraska took 1st They beat North Dakota by less than 1%.
Thank you for participating in 2023! We look forward to this fun event to celebrate Farm to School month in 2024.
How to use the Nutrition Facts Label & Identifying Added Sugar
Please join us on Tuesday, December 19, 2 p.m. CST.
Which label do you use for what? We use nutrition facts labels, child nutrition labels and product formulation statements in our Child Nutrition Programs. On top of the regulations to follow, this can add complexity to an already complex program! Join us as we walk through how to read the nutrition facts label, identify added sugar and in the end, how you can use this to your advantage in your School Nutrition Program.
As always, this webinar will be recorded and posted to our website (UPDATES | North Dakota Department of Public Instruction (nd.gov)) if you are unable to attend live.
This is a Microsoft Teams meeting, please use the link below to join the meeting.
Join on your computer or mobile app
Click here to join the meeting
The second webinar of its kind - intended for Food Service Directors, Record Keepers, or Business Managers who handle administrative tasks for School Nutrition Programs. Our CNFD office started this webinar series this school year, set to occur quarterly (October, January, and April, Summer TBD) to discuss administrative related aspects/topics of the USDA National School Lunch Programs.
The first webinar, held in October discussed Verification procedures. If you missed it, you can watch the recording here: NDDPI Child Nutrition - Across the Desk 10.10.2023 - YouTube (or on our website: UPDATES | North Dakota Department of Public Instruction (nd.gov))
Please join us on Tuesday, January 9 from 2-3 PM CST. The agenda and the meeting link for January will be announced in the January newsletter!
The North Dakota School Nutrition Association (NDSNA) has shifted to a more public platform to expand their reach. Previously, NDSNA had a private group on Facebook. Now you can find them as a public page called "North Dakota School Nutrition Association". Be sure to 'like' the page to see the happenings and updates.
Be one of the first to 'LIKE' their new page!
If you are not currently a member of the School Nutrition Association, reach out to our office and we can provide assistance with your registration. There is an annual fee, however this is an allowable foodservice (05) account expense. If you are interested, but need more information, we can also provide more information on the some of the benefits.
Once you are a member of the 'National' School Nutrition Association, you will select North Dakota as your affiliate, and will automatically become a member of the North Dakota School Nutrition Association!
Get the Back to School Workshop dates for 2024 on your calendar! We will be in Fargo both July 30 and 31, Bismarck on August 6 and 7 and Minot on August 8.
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