Mayfield Students Harvest Lettuce for School Lunches
 Mayfield students harvest 82 heads of lettuce for school lunches.
Seven students from Mayfield High School and Cuyahoga East Vocational Educational Consortium (CEVEC) learned to grow romaine lettuce using hydroponic units made possible by the Department of Education and Workforce’s Grow Ohio Grant. Before harvest, students led the project by checking the pH levels, water, and nutrients. In only 48 days, 82 heads of lettuce were ready for kitchen preparation and served on student meal trays.
“Our farm is amazing because it grew so fast. The lettuce is so healthy and fresh,” said Sabrina Feldman, a CEVEC student.
Students will plant green star lettuce and a fruit variety in the hydroponic units next.
“This kind of experiential learning strengthens critical thinking and makes academic content more meaningful, which aligns fully to the Mayfield Portrait of a Graduate,” said Associate Principal of Consortium Learning, Deanna Elsing.
Read the full story here.
Crestwood Local Schools Farm to School Event
Crestwood Local Schools food service staff host a Farm to School event.
Crestwood Local Schools hosted a Farm to School event in November 2025. Students enjoyed a sausage lunch, made from pork raised by an intermediate school student and purchased through a blind bid process through the Junior Fair livestock auction at the local fair. Along with the sausage, students enjoyed local potatoes, apples, milk, maple syrup, and dough, used to make egg and cheese pinwheels. All featured menu items were local, northeast Ohio grown or produced products. Crestwood Local partnered with Feed our Future to conduct an on-site taste test, allowing students to provide school lunch feedback.
Invite a Special Guest to Your Farm to School Event!
The Office of Nutrition’s mascot, Munch the Fox, is available for school and childcare visits throughout the year. Request an appearance by using this link.
Local Agriculture Market Program Awards
On March 10, The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced awards of over $26.8 million to grant projects through the Local Agriculture Market Program (LAMP). The program helps local and regional food entities develop, coordinate, and expand producer-to-consumer marketing, local and regional food markets, and local food enterprises. The following Ohio organizations received awards. Contact the organizations for additional information on connecting to local producers for child nutrition programs or visit the AMS LAMP webpage.
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Franklinton Farms, Columbus - The Franklinton FarmStore project will create a digital farmers market to expand food access in Columbus by building an online platform, coordinating multiple pickup sites, and running marketing efforts. Its goals are to improve food security, boost farmer income, and develop a model that can be replicated elsewhere.
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Wayne Co. Ohio District of Health, Wooster - The Orrville Farmers Market will expand its reach through advertising, social media, billboards, and themed events to boost attendance, encourage local produce consumption, and strengthen community ties.
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Food Strong, South Euclid - The Local Food Systems Expansion project will assess how to scale a mobile farm stand in Northeast Ohio by conducting market research, developing a business plan, and creating a marketing strategy. Its goal is to expand access to local foods and increase producer participation in regional markets.
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Rural Action, Inc., Athens - The Piloting the Appalachian Ohio Farm-to-Freezer Initiative pilots farmer‑led aggregation and processing of produce in Appalachian Ohio, develops value‑added products, and evaluates the feasibility of a cooperative to expand markets, reduce waste, and increase producer profitability..
Ohio Grown: Student Chef Showcase Finalists
 2025 Ohio Grown: Student Chef Showcase participants prepare their recipe during the cooking competition.
The Ohio Grown: Student Chef Showcase is a student-centered competition to develop youth interest in nutrition and culinary arts career pathways through hands-on experience creating and cooking an original school lunch recipe. Teams developed, tested, and submitted original lunch recipes featuring at least one Ohio Farm to School featured ingredient to the Department. The teams of the top five scoring recipes have been selected to cook their dishes for a panel of judges on May 8. The top-scoring team of the showcase will be awarded the 2026 Ohio Grown: Student Chef Showcase Champion!
Congratulations to the 2026 Ohio Grown: Student Chef Showcase Finalists!
- Team Awesome Sauce, COMMUNITY STE[A]M Academy – Xenia (Greene County)
- Recipe: Fajita Sunset Fiesta Bowl
- Team JUAVE, Cory-Rawson Local School District (Hancock County)
- Recipe: Holy Cajun Trinity
- Team Hamilton Culinary Crew, Hamilton City School District (Butler County)
- Recipe: No-Pasta Beef Lasagna with Spicy Roasted Broccoli
- Supreme Greene Team, Sycamore Community Schools (Hamilton County)
- Recipe: Greene and Gold Bowl
- Team Defenders of Flavor, Youngstown City School District (Mahoning County)
- Recipe: Defenders Power Lunch
To learn more about the Ohio Grown: Student Chef Showcase, visit the webpage or contact Kara Johnson.
Ohio Local Food Buying & Selling Guides for Providers and Producers – Free and Ready to Download
 Looking to bring more local food into early care and education settings? Check out Ohio’s Local Food Guides—Buying Local Foods for Early Care and Education and Selling Local Foods to Early Care and Education Providers. These easy‑to‑use tools help ECE programs and farmers connect, navigate purchasing, and get more Ohio‑grown foods onto young learners’ plates. Fresh, local, and a win for everyone!
Not sure where to begin? For step‑by‑step guidance, check out the decision trees designed to help you get started. Page 15 of the Buying Guide or page 19 of the Selling Guide outline clear paths based on your role and goals.
Ohio's Farm to Summer Celebrations
 Ohio Farm to Summer Digital Badges
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Celebrate the extraordinary impact serving local foods and incorporating agriculture and nutrition activities has on children during the summer months. The Department of Education and Workforce hosts two Farm to Summer Celebrations, including the Cucumber Crunch and the Farm to Summer Challenge.
The Cucumber Crunch is a chance to purchase locally or regionally grown cucumbers and serve them in program meals. Cucumber Crunch Day is July 9, but organizations can participate any day during the summer. Sign up to register your crunch and receive promotional cucumber stickers and cucumber seed packets.
The Farm to Summer Challenge recognizes child nutrition program (CNP) operators for participating in Farm to Summer activities. CNP operators completing the challenge will be featured on the Ohio Department of Agriculture’s Farm to School website and receive a Gold Gourd, Silver Snow Pea or Bronze Bean award from the Department. To be recognized, take part in at least one activity from one of the challenge areas:
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Eat: Serve locally grown food or eat a locally grown cucumber for Cucumber Crunch Day.
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Grow: Participate in a gardening activity, take an agriculture related field trip or host a gardening professional, such as Master Gardener for a lesson.
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Engage: Share your Farm to Summer activities through social media, local media coverage, a newsletter, a website, or other engagement channel.
Sign up to participate in the Farm to Summer Challenge. Organizations that take part in these activities will be recognized as participants in the Farm to Summer Challenge during the annual Summer Summit conference. To receive additional details and resources about the Farm to Summer Challenge, register now.
Please contact Hannah Hart with any Farm to Summer questions.
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Ohio Proud on the Menu
Ohio Proud partners produce food or agricultural products that are at least 50 percent grown, raised, or processed in Ohio. If your child nutrition program has a menu item that uses one Ohio Proud item, you are encouraged to complete the Ohio Proud on the Menu survey to let us know about your use of Ohio Proud foods. Ohio Proud child nutrition programs have access to the Ohio Proud on the Menu logo which can be used on menus, social media, and other promotional materials. Your school or organization will also be listed on the Ohio Department of Agriculture's Ohio Proud Farm to School webpage as an Ohio Proud on the Menu child nutrition program.
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Creditable School Recipe
In Ohio, collard greens grow in May through October. As a leafy green vegetable, collard greens are known for their hearty, slightly bitter flavor. This delicious combination of collard greens, green peppers, and caramelized onions can feature fresh, local, Ohio-grown produce packed with antioxidants, vitamin K, and calcium.
(Source: Child Nutrition Recipe Box)
Child Nutrition Program Crediting Information: 1/3 cup provides ¼ cup vegetable.
The Dirt: Columbus City Schools
Columbus City Schools has a mission-driven team that works collaboratively to bring Farm to School activities to students. Katie Young, Tim McDermott, and Jason Jurey work together and represent a close partnership between the school district, Ohio State University Extension, and an industry partner supporting the project.
Through their Farm to Table initiative, teachers are empowered to integrate hydroponic grow systems into classroom learning, positively impacting over 46,000 students. Columbus City Schools was recently featured in USDA’s Farm to School newsletter, “The Dirt”.
View previous editions of “The Dirt” and subscribe to receive future monthly newsletters here.
New! Patrick Leahy Farm to School Grant Awards Announced
 Congratulations to the first cohort of Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 Patrick Leahy Farm to School Grant Program awardees! On April 16, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) began awarding grants, providing nearly $20 million to support projects that bring more nutritious, local food to students while expanding economic opportunities for farmers and food producers.
The Trust for Public Land, a nonprofit organization based in San Francisco, California, was awarded funding to expand Garfield Heights City School District’s state-certified Career-Technical Education agricultural and environmental systems career field pathway curriculum, in Ohio.
Learn more about the 2026 awardees on the Patrick Leahy Farm to School Grant Program Awards webpage.
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